UlBRAHY OF CONGRESS. ; 



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;^ UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. \ 




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^SOLOaiCHICE 







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■J^SHAygx 




MflOA iSH m 



HO^ SNOIXOaNN 



'saiHi 



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"^LMUAIf ^ 



RELIABLE CONNECTIONS 

QUICK TIME 
LAST HXPRLSS TRAINS, 



NEW YORK, 




PHILADKLlMllA, 


BALTIMUKK, 




AND 




WASHINGTON, 


DAILY (Suiidi 


y» ox.,o,)U)cJ) for 


Allcntown, 


Auburn, 


Maiich CliunU, 


Rodu-St.T, 


Glen Onoko, and tlu 


Buffalo, 


Switch-back, 


Niagara Falls, 


Catawissa, 


The Canadas, 


Sunbui^, 


Dunkirk, 


Wilkcs-Ban-e, 


Erie, . 


Pittston, 


Oil Regions, 


Hazleton, 


Cleveland, 


Danville, 


Toledo, 


Mahanoy City, 


1 )etroit. 


Watkins Cileii, 


Kcadiny;, 
Harrisburu', 


Ithaca, 


Pittsburs;, 


Owego, 


Chicago, 



THE GREAT NORTH-WEST. 



,nilLAl)ELPllI,\TOBUFF;\l,(), 

15 I3:OX7E.S, 

With but one change, arriving in Buffalo and Niagara 
the same evening. 



MERCHANTS AND TOURISTS 



., but nflbrds lo the 'I'mvoler viows of tlu- 

WYOMING VALLEY SCENERY 

That arc proaounccd lo be uniiv.il,,! 



This Uno offera tllc I'l-omivnn IiKhucimuK i„ 

TOURISTS AND TRAVELERS, 

Lot Exwiiioii Faits. Qimk Time. Misiil/Uml Srriun 
To Enjoy Sinmncr Tnwcl, Secmt Seals in llie 

PALACE DRAWING-ROOM CAR. 

niftn-cls of elegnncc; free from dust a 
rd an uniiHemipted view of the scenery, 
render tnwcUng thoroughly cnjoyivblc. 





DOUBLE TRACK SHORT LINE, 

RUNNING TO ANU FROM ALL POINTS IN TlIK 

MAHAIOY,BEAyER MEADOW, HAZLETON & WYOMING 

COAL FIELDS, 



AND THROUGH THE 



LEHIGH AND WYOMING VALLEYS, 

AND UP THE NORTH BRANCH OF THE SUSQUEHANNA, 



FORMINa 



Direct Connections for all Points in CENTRAL and WESTERN NEW YORK, the CANADAS, 

The West and North-West. 



TO>JT;^T^f-|-^ /"V"riT1T/^ind 1^" Philadelphia, at 732 Chestnut St., Mann's Baggage and Express Office, 105 South Fifth St., N. W. cor. 
; I V r J I ( I H r I J r jN ' Walnut .street, and at the Depot, corner Berks^and American Sts. In New York, at Depot C. R. R. N 
'^^^^ •■ ^'A J- i-Vy-LJ^^:». I .^nd Morris & Esse.x R. R. Depots, foot of Barclay and Christopher Streets. North River. 



Delaware Avenue and 
J., foot of Liberty St., 



THROUGH TICKETS for Baltimore, Washington, and Points South, are sold from all Principal Stations. 



FREIGHT. 



Tlic facilities of the Lehigh Valley Double Track 

Uailroad for the prompt dispatch of all kinds 

iif Merchandise Krciglils are iHU'i|ualed. 

Fast Frhigi IT Trains 

WIN n.Ml.V liKTWKKN 



New York, 

Philadelphia, 

Belhlohein, 

.MIdUowii, 

Mauch Clumk, 

Hazleton, 

Catawissa, 

Danville, 

.Sunbury, 



Mahanoy City, 

Wilkes-Marrc, 

Pittslon, 

I'iiiilra, 

Ithaca, 

Owego, 

Auburn, 

Rochester, 

Buffalo, 



,\Ni) Al.l, I'OIN-IS IN Till'; 

MAHANOY, BEAVER MEADOW, HAZLETON, 
AND WYOMING 

COAL FIELDS, 

MAKIN(; DIHKCT CONNECTIONS KOK 



THE WEST 



RATES OF FREIGHT 

A/wars as linv as li\i any "III"' roiilc. 



IN NEW YORK, 

C. R. R. of N. J., foot of Uwa.li Street, m 

Morris and Essex R. R., foot of Babcuiv and 

foot of Clarkson Sts., North River; 



IN PIIILADKLPHIA. 

Cor. Front and Willow Srs., North Henna. R.R, 



's-aaiSAvai qnv sisraaoi 

o, s,u,maonpui mniuiwd 'V ='»fl° «°!T ""X 







t.tsi> 



GUIDE-BOOK 



OF THE 



LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD 



AND 



ITS SEVERAL BRANCHES AND CONNECTIONS; 

WITH AN ACCOUNT, DESCRIPTIVE AND HISTORICAL, 

OF THE 

PLACES ALONG THEIR ROUTE; 

INCLUDING ALSO 

A HISTORY OF THE COMPANY FROM ITS FIRST ORGANIZA- 
TION. AND INTERESTING FACTS CONCERNING THE 
ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE COAL AND 
IRON TRADE IN THE LEHIGH AND 
WYOMING REGIONS. 

HANDSOMELY ILLISTEATED FROM RECENT SKETCHES, 



PREFIXED TO WHICH IS A MAP OF THE ROAD AND ITS 
CONNECTIONS. 



PHILADELPHIA: A 

J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO. 
1873. 




ieSioh^auiyRai L IpflJ, 

Peuim & KYJ iOTaU Kail Road 

ScmIo of Miles 



COMPILED BY G,A,ASCHBACH,CIVIt. ENG, 150 CANAL ST NEWYOF 



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Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1872, by 

WILLIAM H. SAYRE, 

In the OfBce of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1873, by 

WILLIAM H. SAYRE, 
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



OFFICERS 

OF THS 

Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, 

JANUARY 21st, 1873. 



President, Vice-President, 

ASA PACKER, CHARLES HARTSHORNE, 

MAUCH CHUNK. PHILADELPHIA. 

Treasurer, Secretary, 

LLOYD CHAMBERLAIN, JOHN R. FANSHAWE, 

PHILADELPHIA. PHILADELPHIA. 

General Superintendent and Chief Engineer, 
ROBERT H. SAYRE, 

BETHLEHEM. 

D IRECTORS. 

CHARLES HARTSHORNE, ASHBEL WELCH, 

WILLIAM W. LONGSTRETH, ARIO PARDEE, 

J. GILLINGHAM FELL, WILLIAM L. CONYNGHAM, 

JOHN TAYLOR JOHNSTON, WILLIAM A. INGHAM, 

WILLIAM H. GATZMER, JOSEPH WHARTON, 

DAVID THOMAS, GEORGE B. MARKLE. 



President's Assist and Gen. Agi., WM. H. SAYRE, Bethlehem. 
Assistant General Superintendent, H. STANLEY Q,OOT>^l^. Bethlehem. 
Supt. Beaver Meadow Divisioit., A. G. BRODHEAD, Mauch Chzttik. 
" Mahajtoy " JAS. I. BLAKSLEE, Mauch Chunk. 

" Wyomi7tg " A. MITCHELL, Wilkes-Barre. 

Getteral Freight Agent, JOHN TAYl^OK, Mauch Ch747ik. 

Cashier, WM. C. MORRIS; Jr., Mauch Chunk. 

Purchasing Agent, L. CHAMBERLAIN, Philadelphia. 

■JOHN I. KINSEY, ^«j/o«. 
DAVID CLARK, Hazleton. 
JOHN CAMPBELL, Delano. 
(.PHILIP HOFECKER, Weatherly. 

3 



Master Mechanics, 



OFFICERS 

OF THE 



PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW YORK CANAL 
AND RAILROAD COMPANY. 



President. 
ROBERT H. SAYRE. 

Treasurei\ 
CHARLES HARTSHORNE. 

General Superintendent. 
ROBERT A. PACKER, 

Directors. 
Asa Packer, 
Wm. W, Longstreth, 
Chas. Hartshorns, 
Robert A. Packer, 
Victor E. Piollet, 
Garrett B. Linderman, 
J. Henry Swoyer, 
John J. Taylor, 
Robert Lockhart, 
Jno. W. Hollenback, 
Wm. H. Sayre, 
Joseph Wharton. 
(4) 



PREFACE. 



This Guide-Book has been prepared with great care 
and fidelity, as well from past historical documents as 
from recent and reliable information. In doing so, 
the writer has freely availed himself of the aid given 
by other publications, while very much of the matter 
is wholly original, and has been obtained directly from 
the places and establishments described. He desires 
to acknowledge gratefully his obligations to the officials 
of the Company and other residents along its road for 
the valuable help so kindly rendered him. He would 
be still further thankful if those readers who may dis- 
cover errors in what is here printed will inform him 
of the same. Such communications may be addressed 

to the President's Assistant at Bethlehem. 

L. C. 

June ist, 1873. 

(5) 



HISTORY 



OF THE 



LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD CO 



FROM ITS ORGANIZATION TO THE PRESENT DATE. 



As preliminary to an account of the different towns 
on the route of the Lehigh Valley Railroad and its 
various branches, it may be interesting to give a brief 
sketch of its history. 

This railroad was originally incorporated under the 
name of the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susque- 
hanna Railroad Company, by an Act of Assembly passed 
April 2ist, 1846. The bill was prepared at the sugges- 
tion and through the agency of a few enterprising and 
far-seeing citizens of Northampton and Lehigh Counties. 
There was strong opposition to it, and it was carried 
through the Legislature mainly by the exertions of Dr. 
Jesse Samuel, a Representative from Lehigh County. 
There seemed to be but little faith in the project on 
the part of capitalists ; for, although the commissioners 
named in the act promptly advertised for subscriptions 
to the stock, it was not until the 2d of August, 1847, 
that a sufficient amount for a commencement could be 
secured. On that day 5002 shares had been taken, on 

(7) 



8 HIS TOR V. 

each of which an installment of five dollars had been 
paid. After considerable trouble, the letters patent were 
issued, and on the 21st day of October, 1847, the first 
election for officers was held, resulting as follows : Pres- 
ident, James M. Porter; Managers, Dudley S. Gregory, 
John S. Dorsey, John P. Jackson, Daniel Mclntyre, Ed- 
ward R. Biddle, and John N. Hutchinson; Secretary, 
John N. Hutchinson. These officers were re-elected for 
the years 1847, 1848, 1849, ^^^ 1850. In the months 
of October, November, and December, 1850,- the first 
survey of the road was made, from the mouth of the 
Mahoning Creek to Easton, by Roswell B. Mason, civil 
engineer. Early in 185 1 the Canal Commissioners of 
the State appointed Jacob Dillinger and Jesse Samuel, 
engineers, to examine whether the proposed railroad 
would not injure the canal of the Lehigh Coal and 
Navigation Company or obstruct its works. They 
reported that it would not, and the Board immediately 
authorized Mr. Hutchinson to commence the construc- 
tion of the railroad, the time limited by the charter for 
its beginning having almost expired. Mr. Dillinger 
was appointed Superintendent, and Dr. Samuel, Engi- 
neer, and under their supervision the work was prose- 
cuted, and during the spring and summer about one 
mile was graded immediately below Allentown. The 
landholders on that part of the route released all claims 
for damages for a nominal consideration. 

On the 31st of October, 1851, Asa Packer became 
the purchaser of nearly all the stock which had been 
subscribed, and commenced to obtain additional sub- 
scriptions, with a view to the prompt construction of 
the road. 



HISTORY. p 

In the spring of 1852, Mr. Robert H. Sayre, at that 
time holding a responsible situation with the Lehigh 
Coal and Navigation Company, was appointed Chief 
Engineer of the railroad company, and on the nth of 
May commenced the survey and location of the line, 
completing it in the latter part of June. About the 
I St of October he again engaged a corps, and started 
upon the permanent location of the road, finishing it 
during the fall and winter. 

On the 27th of November, 1852, Judge Packer sub- 
mitted a proposition (which was duly accepted) for 
constructing the railroad from opposite Mauch Chunk, 
where it would intersect the Beaver Meadow Railroad, 
to Easton, where it would connect with the New Jersey 
Central Railroad and the Belvidere Delaware Railroad, 
and thus furnish outlets for its trade to the two great 
cities. New York and Philadelphia. Judge Packer 
agreed to receive as payment for this work the com- 
pany's stock and bonds, and work was commenced 
immediately at Mauch Chunk and Easton. 

On the 7th of January, 1853, the name of the Com- 
pany was changed by Act of Assembly to that of the 
Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, and on the loth of 
that month James M. Porter was re-elected President ; 
John N. Hutchinson, Treasurer and Secretary ; William 
Hackett, David Barnet, William H. Gatzmer, Henry 
King, John T. Johnston, and John O. Stearns, 
Managers. 

Judge Packer prosecuted the work with unceasing 
vigor, notwithstanding the formidable obstructions en- 
countered in making the roadway at different points 
through the rocky bluffs, in some places rising to- great 

A* 



lo HISTORY. 

height. He had the work at Rockdale (the particulars 
of which will be found under that head) and at some 
other difficult points done by the day. At Easton also 
the road was constructed at heavy expense through a 
solid and extensive bed of limestone. 

During the summer of 1853, the advance in the 
prices of labor, materials, provisions, etc., and the 
unusual amount of sickness then prevailing along the 
whole line (it was at this time that cholera visited this 
region), retarded the work very greatly. 

A subsequent contract for connection with the Bel- 
videre Delaware Railroad at Phillipsburg without 
ascending grade involved an entire change of plan, 
much delay, and a consequent increase in the cost of 
bridge and adjoining improvements. The task imposed 
was to connect with two roads on the east bank of the 
Delaware River, running at right angles to each other, 
and varying about twenty-two feet in elevation. This 
required a style of bridge as yet wholly unknown, the 
successful building of which was a theme of general in- 
terest and congratulation. Much of the difficulty also 
attending its construction arose from the frequent and 
continued high water. To obviate this trouble, the 
greater part of the structure was raised upon wire cables 
stretched from pier to pier, — a novel undertaking, which 
was satisfactorily accomplished. 

In this early period of the history of the road, valued 
aid was rendered by several gentlemen connected with 
the Central Railroad of New Jersey in the purchase of 
its stocks and bonds, and by the Camden and Amboy 
Railroad Company, which loaned its securities to the 
contractor; the community at large not having as yet 



HISTORY. II 

enough faith in the success of this new enterprise to 
make its own securities sufficiently available. 

The road was opened for the transportation of pas- 
sengers from South Easton to Allentown, June nth, 
1855, ^'^^ ^^0 trains ran daily to the latter place until 
September 12th, when the road was opened for travel to 
Mauch Chunk, — one train a day being run until the ist 
of October. Up to this time, the road was operated 
by Judge Packer with rolling stock hired from the Cen- 
tral Railroad Company of New Jersey. The road was 
accepted from the contractor from and after September 
24th. Up to the 19th of November, the Central Rail- 
road Company ran two passenger trains daily from Eas- 
ton to Mauch Chunk, connecting with the Philadelphia 
trains on the Belvidere Delaware Railroad. At this 
date one of the passenger trains was withdrawn, a 
freight train with passenger car being substituted. This 
arrangement proving unsatisfactory, and a passenger 
locomotive and four cars having been in the mean time 
purchased, on the 24th of December the passenger 
train connecting with the early and late trains from 
New Vork and Philadelphia was run by the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad Company, the Central Company still 
running the mid-day train. At the same time, a daily 
freight train was put upon the road, leaving Easton in 
the morning and returning in the evening. 

The receipts from passengers during these three 
months were larger than was anticipated. Those from 
coal and miscellaneous freight were limited by want of 
cars. The coal, iron, and ore were transported in 
cars furnished by the Central Railroad Company, the 
Beaver Meadow Railroad and Coal Company, and 



12 



HIS TOR Y. 



Packer, Carter & Co. In the early part of October, 
an arrangement was made with Howard & Co., of 
Philadelphia, to do the freighting business of the road 
(except coal, iron, and iron ore), they furnishing cars, 
train-hands, etc., and paying a fixed rate per mile for 
toll and transportation. An arrangement was also 
effected with the Hope Express Company, of New 
York, for carrying the express-matter at a given sum 
per month. 

The receipts and expenditures were as follows : 





Coal. 


Passengers. 


Freight. 


Total. 


October 


^91247 


#6,812.93 


#94-34 


#7,819.74 


November . 


, 2,648.42 


6,223.44 


590.03 


9,461.89 


December . 


1,792-43 


5,67544 

EXPENSES. 


1,768.45 


9,236.32 

#26,517.95 


October 


. 


. 


#4,501.15 




November 


, 


. 


5,350.60 




December 


• 




13,884.58 


23,736.33 



Net profit #2,781.62 

In the beginning of the year 1856, it was thought 
necessary to remove the main office of the Company to 
Philadelphia. Judge Porter on this account declined 
a re-election to the presidency, and, on February 5th, 
Mr. Wm. W. Longstreth was chosen to fill the vacancy, 
but resigned on the 13th of May following, when Mr. 
J. Gillingham Fell was elected President. 

In the year 1857, the North Pennsylvania Railroad 
was completed to Bethlehem, and immediate connec- 
tion was thus obtained with Philadelphia by the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad. 



HISTORY. 



13 



During the year 1857, the Catasauqua and Fogels- 
ville Railroad (designed for the supply of iron ore to 
the various furnaces along the Lehigh) was completed, 
connecting with the Lehigh Valley Railroad at Cata- 
sauqua. 

In 1858, connection was formed between the Qua- 
kake Railroad (now the Mahanoy Division) and the 
Catawissa Railroad for Catawissa, Rupert, Danville, 
Williamsport, Elmira, etc. 

During the year 1859, the East Pennsylvania Road 
was finished and put into operation, thus forming a 
valuable junction with the connections between New 
York and the West, to complete which seventeen miles 
of the Lehigh Valley Road are used. During the same 
year the Lehigh Luzerne Railroad, connecting the 
Hazleton Road with the Black Creek Valley, was fin- 
ished, by which another large and valuable field of coal 
was opened to the market. 

During the year i860, the large shops at Easton, for 
the manufacture and repair of engines and cars, were 
built. Li January, 1862, steel fire-boxes were first 
used. In June of this year the disastrous freshet, 
alluded to more fully under the head of White aven, 
occurred, causing great damage to the road, and for 
awhile seriously impairing its business. In this same 
year Mr. Fell resigned the presidency of the Com- 
pany, and Judge Packer was elected in his stead. 

In 1863, steel tires were first introduced. During 
this same year forty-seven acres of land were bought at 
Burlington (now Packerton), for the more convenient 
making-up of coal trains, and for the erection of car- 

2 



14 



HISTOR Y. 



and machine-shops, which were put at once under con- 
struction. 

In 1864, Judge Packer resigned the presidency of 
the road, and Mr. Wm. W. Longstreth was elected to 
fill the vacancy. 

On the 8th of July, 1864, by the unanimous approval 
of the stockholders of the respective companies, this 
Company incorporated with itself the Beaver Meadow 
Railroad and the Penn Haven and White Haven 
Railroad. The former road, with double track, ex- 
tended from East Mauch Chunk to Penn Haven, and 
from thence to Beaver Meadow, and by its various 
branches to the adjoining mines in Carbon and Schuyl- 
kill Counties. By this union the Lehigh Valley Rail- 
road Company became owners also of a considerable 
body of coal land near the village of Beaver Meadow. 
The second of the two roads thus merged extended 
from Penn Haven Junction to White Haven, a distance 
of seventeen miles. By the acquisition of these several 
roads, and by their various important connections, the 
Lehigh Valley Railroad added at once very largely to 
its business of every description, and was put in a posi- 
tion of still greater prosperity for the immediate future. 
At the same time, by its subscription to the stock of 
the Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad Company, it was 
aiding materially a near extension of its business in 
other important directions. 

During the year 1865 the second track between 
Easton and Mauch Chunk was laid. During this same 
year the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company an- 
nounced their determination to build from Penn Haven 
to White Haven. This made it necessary, in order to 



insroR y 



15 



secure a portion of the Wilkes-Barre "trade, to put the 
extension of the Lehigh Valley Railroad under con- 
tract, which was promptly done. About this time also 
the Morris and Essex Railroad was opened, connecting 
with the Lehigh Valley at Phillipsburg, and reaching 
to Hoboken, giving increased facility to trade in that 
direction. 

hi June, 1866, by the unanimous action of both com- 
panies, the Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad was merged 
with the Lehigh Valley Railroad, thus adding $2, 145,850 
to the capital of this latter company, and greatly increas- 
ing its capacities and facilities. The length of the main 
line thus added, from Black Creek to Mount Carmel, is 
forty miles, of sidings and short branches twenty and 
three-quarter miles more. In the early part of this same 
year, Judge Packer purchased, on behalf of the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad Company, a controlling interest in the 
North Branch Canal, extending from Wilkes-Barre to the 
New York State line, a distance of over one hundred 
miles, with a charter from the Commonwealth authoriz- 
ing the Company to change its corporate title to the 
Pennsylvania and New York Canal and Railroad Com- 
pany, and to build a railroad the entire length. The 
canal was valued in this arrangement at $1,050,000, over 
three-fourths of which are embraced in the purchase. 

During this same year, subscriptions were received 
for 24,462 additional shares of stock, amounting to 
81,323,100, for the purpose of extending the railroad 
from White Haven to the Wyoming Valley. 

On May 29th, 1867, the extension of the road to 
Wilkes-Barre was opened for business, amid the hearty 
congratulations of all the residents of the Wyoming 



1 6 HIS TOR Y. 

Valley. The construction of the road thence to 
VVaverly was prosecuted vigorously, portions from 
Wilkes-Barre to Pittston, and from Towanda to the 
State line, having been brought into active and profit- 
able use. 

On June ist, 1868, by a merger of the. stock of the 
Hazleton Railroad Company, and soon thereafter by a 
similar merger of the Lehigh Luzerne Railroad Com- 
pany, the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company came into 
possession of said roads, rights, franchises, and property. 
By these two mergers, and by purchase of rolling stock 
and other property from the lessees, there inured to this 
Company a total length of tracks of sixty-five miles, also 
about eighteen hundred acres of valuable coal lands, a 
large amount of town lots and other real estate, cars, 
machinery, etc. 

In August, this Company purchased the railroad of 
the Spring Mountain Coal Company from Leviston to 
Jeanesville, and about October ist grading was com- 
menced for a short extension towards Yorktown and 
towards the mines of the German Pennsylvania Coal 
Company. On November 2d the road of tiie P. & N. 
Y. C. & R. R. Co. was opened for business from the 
Lackawanna and Bloomsburg Junction to Tunkhannock. 
In June, connection was made at Towanda with the 
Barclay Railroad. During this year also ground was 
purchased and pockets erected sufficient for the transfer 
of 100,000 tons of coal at Waverly. 

In this year Judge Packer was again elected to the 
presidency of the road, which office he has continued 
to hold to the present time. 

On September 20th, 1869, the road of the P. & 



HISTORY. 



17 



N. Y. C. & R. R. Company was opened for business as 
far as Waverly, its northern terminus, the whole length 
from Wilkes-Barre being one hundred and five miles. 
This important event was hailed with evident satisfaction 
by the people of the northern portion of our own State, 
and by the citizens of Southern and Western New 
York, who have long looked with eager anxiety for the 
completion of a railroad from the anthracite coal-field 
of Wyoming to their homes by the route that nature 
seems to have made the most feasible and generally 
acceptable. 

A fact of considerable interest may here be noted, 
viz., that in the construction of railroads in this section 
of country, the engineers' lines have generally been 
those of the old Indian war-paths^ which would natu- 
rally prove to be the best suited for this purpose. 

During this same year, the Lehigh Valley Railroad 
Company continued the policy approved by the stock- 
holders at their previous annual meeting, of securing a 
proportion of the coal trade from each region by the 
purchase of interests in other companies owning lands 
on or near their several branches. 

In October, a very disastrous flood occurred, doing 
more or less damage along the whole line of the road, 
and seriously impeding its business for a short period. 

In this year the extensive car-, machine-, and repair- 
shops at Weatherly were completed. 

To guard the Company's interests at Buffalo, and to 
provide facilities for transferring coal and other prod- 
ucts to Lake vessels from the several roads entering 
that city, this Company subscribed to thirty-four- 
fortieths of the stock of the Buffalo Creek Railroad 



1 8 HISTORY. 

Company, and commenced this year the work of con- 
struction, which was completed in June, 1870. 

Arrangements were made in the latter part of 1870, 
by laying a third rail on the Erie Railway, by which 
trains now run through to Elmira over that road, and 
also to Auburn over the Southern Central Railroad of 
New York, with which latter road a connection is made 
at Athens. Thus an opening was made for the im- 
portant trade on both the Erie and New York Central 
Railroads. 

As a further protection to its coal trade, the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad Company this year secured a control- 
ling interest in an additional quantity of coal lands. 

During this year, the branch road, three and a half 
miles in length, from Slatington to Slatedale, was com- 
pleted, furnishing much-needed facilities for the trans- 
portation of slate from the quarries. Several other 
branch roads to various collieries were also graded and 
laid ; in addition to which, surveys and locations of lines 
were made for a prospective increase of coal tonnage in 
the Wyoming Valley. 

The manufacture of steel rails (some of which, made 
abroad, had been laid down by the Company in 1864) 
in the United States being now an assured fact, con- 
tracts were made with several home companies for a 
considerable number of tons, every year's experience 
demonstrating the superiority of such rails over every 
other kind, as also of this metal when used for tires 
and fire-boxes. 

The first year's business over the line of the Penn- 
sylvania and New York Canal and Railroad Company 
more than realized the anticipations formed concerning 



HISTORY. 



19 



it, the total earnings being $926,265.60, or, on an 
average, $8,673. 24 per mile. The receipts of the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad the first year (1856) were $5,272.01 
per mile. The receipts of the Canal were, in addition, 
$23,420.16, considerably less than the expenses of 
operating and repairs, which latter item was unusually 
large on account of damage from freshets. 

The Company's coal trade had suffered for a number 
of years from the want of an independent outlet to 
tide-water, and to remedy this deficiency in part, a 
perpetual lease was made, early in 1871, of the prop- 
erty of the Morris Canal and Banking Company. By 
this arrangement, the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company 
came into the possession of a line of canal one hundred 
and two miles long, extending from the terminus of the 
road at Phillipsburg to Jersey City, with a basin of sixty 
acres, having a frontage of fifteen hundred feet on the 
North River, directly opposite New York City, and also 
of much valuable property at other points. One of the 
great advantages already resulting from this lease is the 
increased capacity for tonnage over the main line with- 
out material increase of rolling stock, in consequence 
of the ability to discharge the coal into the boats and 
return the cars at once to the mines. 

In continuation of the policy alluded to above, a 
charter was obtained in the winter of 1871-72 from the 
Legislature of New Jersey for the Bound Brook and 
Easton Railroad Company, with authority to build a 
railroad from Easton to Bound Brook, which company, 
by an act passed later in the same session, was con- 
solidated with the Perth Amboy and Bound Brook 
Railroad Company, under the name of the Easton and 



20 HISTOR Y. 

Amboy Railroad Company. The stock of this con- 
solidated company was almost entirely taken by, and 
its interests are now identical with those of, the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad Company. 

A careful survey of the whole line from Phillipsburg 
to Perth Amboy has been made, and all the heavier 
parts of the work put under contract. Satisfactory 
progress is being made in its construction ; the road 
may be in operation some time during the next 
year. It is also in contemplation to construct, at 
an early day, from some point on this same road, a 
direct and independent line to New York, for passen- 
gers and freight. 

At Perth Amboy a large tract of valuable land has 
been secured, with a view to the construction of exten- 
sive wharves for the storage and shipping of the coal 
received, as well from the trade in general as from the 
mines already owned and controlled by the company. 
Plans for them have been adopted, and the wharves 
are already in course of erection. 

During the year 1871 the Hazleton Branch, into the 
Valley of the Black Creek, was opened for about nine 
miles to a junction with the Danville, Hazleton and 
Wilkes-Barre Railroad, thus making in connection with 
that road an alternative route to Sunbury and intermedi- 
ate points, and affording an eastern outlet for the busi- 
ness of the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad at Sunbury. 
A large body of valuable coal lands, heretofore unde- 
veloped, will find a market for their produce over this 
extension. 

In the latter part of 1870, Mr. John P. Cox, the 
Superintendent of the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Co. 



HISTORY. 



21 



(an official of many years' service and highly esteemed 
by a large circle of friends), died suddenly, and Mr. 
R. A. Packer was elected to fill the vacancy. The 
business of this road during the year was materially in- 
creased by the opening of the Sullivan and Erie Rail- 
road, the Southern Central Railroad, and the Ithaca 
and Athens Railroad ; the former principally as a feeder, 
and the two latter as outlets for coal. The completion 
of the narrow-gauge railroad between Tunkhannock 
and Montrose will also add very considerably to the 
traffic of this division of the road. 

During the session of the Legislature in 1872, the 
Company was released from the obligation to maintain 
the canal, except that portion of it between the Feeder 
Dam on the Lackawanna River and Northampton 
Street, Wilkes-Barre, while this may be required to feed 
the canal between this latter place and Nanticoke Dam. 

During the year 1872a considerable increase of capi- 
tal became necessary for the building of the Easton and 
Amboy Railroad and for the purchase of additional 
coal lands. To meet this need, a resolution was 
adopted authorizing a distribution of new stock to 
the stockholders in proportion of one share for every 
three shares then held, an opportunity which was 
fully embraced by those interested. 

The equipment of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Com- 
pany on the 30th of November, 1872, was as follows : 
Engines of all classes . . . . . 181 



Passenger Cars 

Baggage and Express Cars 

Gravel Cars 

Wreck and Tool Cars 



44 

25 
69 

9 



22 



HISTORY, 



^21,468,800 00 

700,830 00 

3,000 00 

703,000 00 

4,048,000 00 

5,000,000 00 



Four-wheel Platform Cars .... 13 

Four-wheel Caboose Cars .... 2 

Eight- wheel Caboose Cars . . . . 16 

House Cars 200 

Eight-wheel Platform and Gondola Cars . . 600 

Six-wheel Platform Cars ..... 100 

Lime Cars ....... 44 

Coal Cars (rated as four-wheel) . . . 155696 

At the close of the Company's last fiscal year, No- 
vember 30th, 1872, its capital account was as follows: 

Preferred and Common Stocks (429,376 
shares) .... 

Scrip for Instalments Received 

Hazleton Coal Co. Bonds (over due) 

Bonds due in 1873 .... 

Six per cent. Bonds (Coupon and Regis- 
tered), due in 1898 

Seven per cent. Registered Bonds, due 
in 1910 

Floating Debt, less cash on hand, none. 

Total ..... ^31,923,630 00 
The equipment of the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Com- 
pany on the same date was as follows : 

Locomotives . . . . . . . 18 

Passenger Cars ...... 2 

Flat and Gondola Cars ..... 207 

Box Cars .- . . . . . . . 131 

Stock Cars . . . . . . . 50 

Four-wheel Coal Cars . . . . . 781 

Gravel Cars ....... 31 

Four-wheel Caboose Cars . . . . 18 

Eight-wheel Derrick Cars .... 2 

And a supply of hand cars and small trucks necessary for re- 
pairs of road. 

The road is well supplied with telegraphic commu- 
nications, two wires running over the greater portion 
thereof, and a through wire from Philadelphia to Wa- 
verly. On November 30th, 1872, there were thirty-six 
offices and forty-eight sets of instruments. 



TONNAGE, RECEIPTS, ETC. 



23 





H 


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TONNAGE AND DISTANCES. 25 

Tonnage of the Pennsylvania and New York Canal and R. R. Co. 



*i869 
1870 
1871 
1S72 



Anthracite Coal. 



284,609 
471,926 

415^194 
1671,484 



Bituminous Coal. 



165,679 

238,399 
302,262 

336,555 



Miscell's Freight. 



11,151 

90,926 
177,621 
215,124 



* Road unfinished. 



t Including 90,547 bj' Canal for a short distance. 



DISTANCES 



2 

4 

7 

9 
12 



MAIN LINE. 

NAMES OF STATIONS, AND MILES 
FROM 

Easton. 
Glendon. 
Chain Dam. 
Redington. 
Freeniansburg. 
Bethlehem. 
17 East Penn Junction. 

17 Allentown. 

18 Furnace. 

19 Ferndale. 

20 Catasauqua. 

21 Hokendauqua. 

22 Coplay. 

23 Portland. 

24 White Hall. 
26 Laury. 

29 Rockdale. 
33 Slatington. 
35 Lehigh Gap. 
2,^ Kittatinny. 

39 Bowman's. 

40 Parryville. 
42 Lehighton. 
44 Packerton. 

46 Mauch Chunk. 

46 East Mauch Chunk. 

48 Glen Onoko. 

52 Bear Creek. 

53 Penn Haven Junction. 

WYOMING DIVISION. 

NAMES OF stations, AND MILES 
FROM easton. 

57 Stony Creek. 
B 



59 Drake's Creek. 

61 Rock Port. 

64 Mud Run. 

66 Hickoiy Run. 

69 Tannery. 

71 White Haven. 

77 Moosehead. 

85 Fairview. 

92 Newport. 

95 Warrior Run. 

97 Sugar Notch. 
100 South Wilkes-Barre. 
loi Wilkes-Barre. 



PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW 

YORK CANAL AND 

RAILROAD. 



names of stations, and MILES 
FROM EASTON. 

106 Plainesville. 

108 Port Blanchard. 

no Pittston. 

Ill L. & B. Junction. 

116 Ransom, 

122 Falls. 

125 McKune. 

128 La Grange. 

133 Tunkhannock. 

138 Vosburg. 

145 Mehoopany. 
148 Meshoppen. 

153 Black Walnut. 

155 Skinner's Eddy. 



26 



DISTANCES AND CONNECTIONS. 



156 Laceyville. 
166 Wyalusing. 
172 Frenchtown. 
176 Rummerfield. 
179 Standing Stone. 
183 Wysauking. 
187 Towanda. 
194 Ulster. 
198 Milan. 
202 Athens. 
204 Sayre. 
206 Waverly. 

BEAVER MEADOW 
BRANCH. 

NAMES OF STATIONS, AND MILES 
FROM EASTON. 

54 Penn Haven. 

60 Weatherly. 

66 Beaver Meadow. 

68 Leviston. 

69 Jeanesville. 

70 Audenried. 

HAZLETON BRANCH. 

NAMES OF STATIONS, AND MILES 
FROM EASTON. 

62 Hazle Creek Bridge. 

63 Miller's. 



65 Lumber Yard. 

66 Tunnel. 

68 Eckley. 

67 Foundry. 

69 Jeddo. 

71 Ebervale. 

68 Stockton. 

70 Hazleton. 

71 Cranberry. 
74 Conyngliam. 
78 Torahicken. 

MAHANOY BRANCH. 



MES 


OF STATIONS, AND MILES 




FROM EASTON. 


59 


Black Creek Junction. . 


62 


Hartz. 


66 


Gerhard. 


71 


Switch Back. 


73 


Quakake Junction. 


77 


Delano. 


79 


Meyersville. 


81 


Mahanoy City. 


82 


Yatesville. 


84 


Shenandoah. 


89 


Raven Run. 


93 


Centralia. 


100 


Mount Carmel. 



CONNECTIONS. 

At Easton with C. R. R. of N. J., for Nev/ York, Newark, 
Elizabeth, Plainfield, Somerville, and intermediate points. 

At Phillipsburg with Morris and Essex R. R,, for Schooley's 
Mountain, Hackettstown, Dover, Morristown, Newark, New 
York, and intermediate points. 

With 'Belvidere Division of the Pennsylvania R. R., for Bel- 
videre, Trenton, Philadelphia, and Stations on the New York 
Division. 

At Bethlehem with North Pennsylvania R. R,. for Philadelphia, 
Baltimore, and Washington. 



CONNECTIONS. 



27 



At East Penn Junction with Philadelphia and Reading R. R., 
for Reading, Pottsville, Lebanon, Harrisburg, Pittsburg, and the 
West. 

At Catasauqua with Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad. 

At Penn Haven Junction with Mahanoy, Beaver Meadow, and 
Hazleton Branches of the L. V. R. R. 

At Quakake with Catawissa R. R., for Danville, Milton, Wil- 
liamsport, Lock Haven, and Erie. 

At Tonihicken with the Danville, Hazleton and Wilkes-Barre 
R. R., for Catawissa, Danville, Sunbury, etc. 

At L. & B. Junction for Scranton. 

At Athens with Southern Central R. R., for Owego, Auburn, 
also with Ithaca and Athens R. R., for Spencer, Vannettenville, 
etc., for the Cayuga, Lake Ithaca and Geneva R. R., and all points 
on the New York Central R. R. 

At Elmira with Erie Railway, for Buffalo, Niagara, the Canadas, 
the West and Northwest, and with the Northern Central Railway 
fot Watkins. 



SKETCHES, 

DESCRIPTIVE AND HISTORICAL, 



OF THE 



CITIES AND TOWNS ON THE ROUTE 

OF THE 

LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD, 

ITS CONNECTIONS AND BRANCHES. 



PHILLIPSBURG. 

This town, although in New Jersey, deserves a place 
in this Guide, as being the present southern or eastern 
terminus of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. It was 
originally an Indian settlement, the site having been 
mapped as early as the year 1654. Its name is derived, 
as some would contend, from an old and influential 
chief of that name who resided there. Others ascribe 
its origin to a large landholder by the name of Phillips. 
The building of the New Jersey Central Railroad in 
1852, and of the Belvidere Delaware Railroad in 1854, 
gave a decided impetus to the growth of the town, 
large sales of land being effected, which led to the 
organization of several extensive manufacturing estab- 
lishments, for which it is advantageously located, sur- 

3* ( 29 ) 



30 PHILLIPSBURG. 

rounded as it is by a rich and fertile country, and pos- 
sessed of ample railroad and canal facilities. 

The railroad bridge connecting Phillipsburg with 
Easton is a double-track wooden bridge, built in 1866. 
Both tracks are on the same level. It connects at 
Phillipsburg with the Morris and Essex R.R., the Cen- 
tral R.R. of N. J., the works of the Morris Canal Co., 
and a branch of the Belvidere and Delaware R.R., the 
grade of which descends to a point near the Andover 
Iron Works, where it connects with the main line. The 
chief manufactories are a sheet-iron rolling-mill, bar- 
iron and carriage-axles rolling-mill, agricultural works, 
stove works, iron furnaces (the particulars of which 
are given below), the Warren Foundry and Machine 
Works, celebrated for their excellent quality of gas- 
and water-pipes (the capacity of which is twenty thou- 
sand tons per year), the works of the Phillipsburg 
Manufacturing Co. for the manufacture of iron bridges 
(capacity four thousand tons per year), and the Vul- 
canized Iron Works. Besides these, there are other in- 
dustrial works, employing a great many hands. 

It has a population of about 7000 people, and con- 
tains I Episcopal, 2 Methodist, i Presbyterian, i Lu- 
theran, and I Roman Catholic church. It also has 
one national bank, with a capital of ^200,000, and one 
savings bank ; one weekly and one daily newspaper. 

The works of the Andover Iron Company (capital, 
^750,000) consist of three stacks. 

No. I, 55 feet high, 18 feet bosh. 
No. 2, 55 " " " " 
No. 3, 42 " " " " 

Their combined capacity is 32,000 tons of pig-iron 



EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA. 31 

per annum. Including those employed in the ore mines, 
400 men are in the service of the company. 

Like its opposite neighbor, Easton (with which it is 
connected by several bridges), Phillipsburg is on a high 
elevation, and presents a commanding appearance. 

EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA. 

This town is one of the oldest in the State, having 
been laid out in 1750, and its early history is replete 
with interesting details. It is situated at the junction 
of the Delaware, Lehigh, and Bushkill Rivers, in part 
upon the debris which their waters have washed down 
and lodged here. Its name was given by Thomas Penn 
from his friend Lord Pomfret's house. The name of 
the new county (it having been formerly a part of 
Bucks) was also the suggestion of Penn. Its records 
reveal a steady growth and improvement in all essential 
particulars. It was incorporated as a borough in 1789, 
and received a second charter of incorporation in 1823. 
Its streets are regularly laid out, and either paved or 
macadamized, and are lighted with gas, supplied with 
water, and kept very neat and clean. The public 
green, called the '^Circle," from its form, is hand- 
somely inclosed and shaded. Many houses, including 
a number of fine residences, have been built upon the 
neighboring hills, giving the town a romantic appear- 
ance. 

The court-house, built of limestone, rough-cast, 
occupies a commanding position on a hill in the 
western part of the town, and is an imposing structure, 
erected at a cost of S6o,ooo. To the north are the 
house and grounds of the Farmers' and Mechanics' 



32 E ASTON, PENNSYLVANIA. 

Institute (said to be the finest in the State), where the 
county fairs are held annually. There are also several 
public halls, and the following church buildings: 4 
Lutheran, 2 Presbyterian, 2 German Reformed, and i 
each of Baptist, Methodist Episcopal, German Meth- 
odist, Protestant Episcopal, bethel Mission, Roman 
Catholic, and a Jewish Synagogue. An Opera House 
capable of seating fifteen hundred persons has been 
erected during the past year. 

There are two daily newspapers (one, the "Ex- 
press," being the pioneer in this part of the country), 
and four weekly. 

The citizens take great pride in their public schools, 
thinking them without any superiors in the State in 
point of a well-graded system, buildings, and play- 
grounds. Recently, there has been erected a very com- 
plete and handsome new school-house, constructed of 
red sandstone trimmed with Ohio sandstone, at a cost 
of over ^100,000. 

There are also six private schools for both sexes, 
foremost among which is Lafayette College, for young 
men, which is under the patronage of the Presbyterian 
Church. This institution was chartered in 1826, 
shortly after the visit of the Marquis de Lafayette to 
America. After remaining for some time in a humble 
building, the corner-stone of the main building of the 
series now standing was laid in 1833. This series 
comprises a number of handsome and substantial 
structures used for educational purposes (including 
Jenks Hall, a new observatory, — built at the expense 
of Prof. Traill Green, — and a recent addition of a large 
Jving to the main edifice), and as residences of the 



E ASTON, PENNSYLVANIA. 33 

Faculty. The grounds cover an area of forty acres, and 
the value of the real estate (exclusive of apparatus, 
worth $20,000, and extensive collections in mineralogy^ 
is estimated at $220,000. There is at interest as an 
endowment fund nearly $300,000, including a munifi- 
cent donation of $200,000 from A. Pardee, Esq., of 
Hazleton, who has lately made another donation of 
$200,000 for the erection of a building (now in pro- 
gress) designed for the departments of Engineering, 
Metallurgy, and Chemistry. Its curriculum of study 
includes all the branches suited to a liberal, classical, 
and scientific education, and, with its able Faculty, Very 
few colleges offer greater inducements. There are rooms 
in the college buildings provided for one hundred and 
forty students, and additional private accommodations 
can be secured at moderate prices. There were for the 
year 1872 two hundred and forty-three students in 
actual attendance, and a corps of twenty-six professor? 
and tutors. 

There is a well-maintained public library (founded 
in 181 1), containing about 5000 volumes. 

The Easton Cemetery is a lovely spot of thirty acres, 
on the Bushkill, containing many beautiful and costly 
monuments, including one to George Taylor, one 
of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, 
whose grave is unknown, but whose dwelling (a plain 
two-story stone building) is still standing, opposite the 
new public school- house. 

While Easton proper can have but few large manu- 
factories, owing to the peculiar situation of the town, 
yet the water-power of the Bushkill has been exten- 
sively used by saw-mills, foundries, tanneries, sash- 

B* 



34 E ASTON, PENNSYLVANIA. 

factories, planing-mills, paint-works, forge for carriage- 
axles, etc. There is also a steam rope-walk, iioo feet 
long. The wholesale and retail stores do a very large 
buiness, supplying the country for many miles round. 
A sheet-iron rolling-mill has lately been erected, with 
a capacity of about 15 tons per week. 

There are two national banks, each having a capital 
of $400,000, in addition to which there are two savings- 
banks, with a combined capital of $145,000. 

Several earnest attempts have been made at different 
periods to navigate the Delaware as far as Easton, with 
steamboats especially constructed for this purpose, but 
always without any permanent success. 

The town is situated in the midst of a rich mineral 
region, and presents a large variety of interesting fields 
for exploration. At the Phillipsburg Cut, on the 
south, the limestone and granite (the only instance of 
this latter mineral being found in this region) come 
together, — an unusual occurrence. The scenery in the 
neighborhood is very picturesque. From Mount Taylor 
and Chestnut Hill, each about 800 feet high, very 
fine views can be obtained. From the latter (about a 
mile north of Easton) a bold isolated rock projects to 
a height of 258 feet, containing a profile of an Indian 
chief's head, hence called St. Anthony's Nose. 

A fine covered bridge (a combination of the truss 
and arch principle), 600 feet long, erected in 1805, at 
a cost of over $60,000, for carriage and foot travel, 
crosses the Delaware to Phillipsburg, and has been 
remarkably preserved during the many severe freshets 
common to this locality. An iron bridge across the 
Lehigh connects Easton and South Easton, between 



SOUTH E ASTON. 



35 



which towns a horse-car railroad runs. Over this, and 
crossing diagonally, the Lehigh and Susquehanna Rail- 
road Company have constructed a very long and sub- 
stantial iron bridge to connect with the New Jersey 
railroads. 

Population, about ii,ooo. 



SOUTH EASTON. 

This town was founded by the Lehigh Coal and 
Navigation Company in 1833, and incorporated as a 
borough in 1840. Its water-powers are derived from 
the canal of that Company, which debouches at this 
place by outlet locks into the basin at the mouth of 
the Lehigh. This power propels a grist-mill, a large 
cotton-mill of nearly three hundred looms, employing 
200 hands, and manufacturing tickings, osnaburgs, and 
stripes; the Glendon Iron Company's Works (for an 
account of which, see Glendon); and Stewart's Wire 
and Rolling Mill, which latter establishment is one of 
the oldest of its kind in the country, dating back to 
1836. It employs 150 hands, its capacity is 20 tons 
per day, and it makes nearly all varieties of bright and 
annealed wire. 

Here are located extensive shops belonging to the 
Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, employing about 
200 hands, and (besides repairs) manufacturing cars, 
frogs, switches, and road-equipments generally. A 
number of superior locomotives have also been turned 
out hence within a few years past, which compare most 
favorably with any that are in use through the Valley. 



36 



G LEND ON. 



45 by 90 feet. 
300 by 60 
125 by 36 
160 by 40 

50 by 60 

30 by 80 

40 by 80 
200 feet in diameter, 



The dimensions of the various buildings are as fol 
lows : 

New boiler-shop 
Machine-shop . 
Car-shop .... 
Blacksmith- and hammer-shop 
Old boiler-shop . 
Store-room . '„ 

Foundry .... 
Round-house 
with accommodations for 28 engines. 

During the year 1872, the Foundry produced of — 

Some cast iron 1,354, Sjolbs. 

" cast brass 27,784 " 

and consumed of — 

Pig-iron 600 tons. 

Merchant iron i75 " 

Cast scrap iron ...... 40 " 

Pig copper 15,000 lbs. 

Amount of material used .... ^240,000 

During the same period, sixty-four locomotives and 
sixty-seven passenger and baggage cars were repaired 
at these shops. 

There are 3 churches, German Roman Catholic, 
Methodist, and Lutheran, a public school-house, and a 
town hall. Population, 3500. 



G L E N D O N. 

Here are the extensive works of the Glendon Iron 
Company for the manufacture of pig-iron. Including 
one (No. 4) at South Easton, there are five stacks in 
all, with the following dimensions and capacity : 

No. 1, 16 feet boshes, 50 feet high, 220 tons per week. 
" 2, 14 " " 50 " " 195 " 

" 3, 16 " " 50 " " 220 " " " 

" 4. IS " " 47 " " 19s 

" 5, 18 " " 72 " " 310 " 



REDINGTON. 



37 



The company is a stock one, with a capital of 
$1,000,000. Excluding 150 men engaged in the 
mines, 400 men are employed in these works. The 
haematite ore and limestone are obtained in the imme- 
diate neighborhood, the magnetic ore from Morris and 
Sussex Counties, New Jersey; and this holds true of 
nearly all the furnaces along the Lehigh. 

The amount of material consumed yearly by this com- 
pany is as follows : 

Iron ore ....... 100,000 tons. 

Coal ........ 85,000 " 

Limestone ....... 50,000 " 

Producing from 55,000 to 57,000 tons of pig-iron. 

Recently, the Easton Iron and Manufacturing Com- 
pany have erected here a furnace with a stack 72 feet 
high and bosh 18 feet wide, the capacity of which is 
200 tons per week. The whole population of the town 
is between 600 and 700, with two school-houses, but 
no church. 

Another furnace is about to be erected by the Key- 
stone Iron Company at Chain Dam, about a mile above 
Glendon. 

REDINGTON. 

Formerly called Lime Ridge, from the quantity of 
limestone abounding in this locality. The scenery at 
this point of the river is particularly beautiful. The 
Coleraine Iron Company have recently erected here 
two stacks 18 by 60 and 17 by 60 feet respectively, 
with a capacity of 500 tons per week, and giving em- 
ployment to nearly 200 men, some of whom afe en- 
gaged in the foundry and machine-shop. 

4 



38 FREEMANSBURG. 

FREEMANSBURG. 

This pretty and thriving borough, named after Mr. 
Jacob Freeman, was settled in 1830, was incorporated 
in 1854, and contains three boat-yards (where in the 
busiest seasons about 100 boats are made per annum), 
saw- and grist-mills, and a soap and candle factory. 
There are two churches, one Evangelical and one used 
in common by the Lutherans and the German Re- 
formed. The Northampton Iron Company (capital 
^250,000) have lately erected here a furnace 65 feet 
high and 16 feet bosh, having a capacity of 200 tons 
per week. They employ about 100 hands. Pop- 
ulation about 800. The Shinersville Grist Mill was 
built in 1745, and is the oldest in Northampton 
county. 

It was at a short distance above Freemansburg that the 
Indian path passed the Lehigh upon which the famous 
walk was performed in 1737. In the summer of that 
year the Indians agreed, in pursuance of a former un- 
fulfilled contract with William Penn, to grant as much 
land north of where Wrightstown, in Bucks County, 
now stands as would be included in a walk of a day 
and a half. The Proprietaries, Thomas and John 
Penn, at once advertised for three expert walkers, one 
of whom, Edward Marshall, accomplished a distance 
of seventy-four miles within the given time, ending his 
walk on a spur of the Second or Broad Mountain. 

The Indians were very much dissatisfied and exas- 
perated at the result of the walk, denouncing it as a 
fraud^ in which view of the case many of the white 
settlers coincided. Pamphlets were published by both 
parties, criminating and recriminating each other 



BETHLEHEM. 3(j 

upon the subject. The Indians and the whites became 
involved finally in a war, which lasted from 1755 to 
1758, during which many cruel murders were com- 
mitted, but the Indians were at length compelled to 
yield the territory. 

Just above the depot, the Saucon creek empties into 
the Lehigh, after draining a very rich valley. 

BETHLEHEM. 

This name is commonly given to two separate bor- 
oughs. Bethlehem proper is situated on the north side 
of the Lehigh. The railroad station is in what is le- 
gally South Bethlehem, situated on the south side of 
the Lehigh, the terminus also of the North Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad, leading to Philadelphia. We will, for 
convenience' sake, consider them as one settlement. 
A peculiar interest has always attached to the town, 
from the fact of its having been the principal settlement 
of the Moravians, or United Brethren, in the United 
States. They came to the New World early in its his- 
tory, to attempt the conversion of the Indians to Chris- 
tianity. They first settled in Georgia; but in 1738 
their settlement was broken up on account of the war 
then raging between England and Spain, and their 
attention was directed to Pennsylvania. For an entire 
century they retained, here some of their distinctive 
principles, viz., the separation of sexes, the "family- 
house" arrangements, the exclusion of all persons who 
were not members of their church, etc. Of late years, 
these peculiar characteristics have more and more ceased 
to be noticeable, and the influx of strangers has partially 
removed the former quaint and foreign appearance of 
the town. 



40 BETHLEHEM. 

Some additional historic interest attaches to this 
place, from the fact that Washington, in his retreat 
across the Delaware, was compelled to remove his hos- 
pital and supplies to Bethlehem, — the Moravians giving 
him the use of their buildings, which at one time were 
filled by British prisoners. Thus the town came to be 
honored by the presence of Washington, Adams, La- 
fayette, Pulaski, Gates, Hancock, and Franklin. 

Washington, we are told, supplied himself with do- 
mestic goods from the Sisters' House, selecting "blue 
stripes" for his wife, and stout woolen hose for himself. 
It was in the spring of 1778, when detachments of the 
American army passed through Bethlehem, and some 
of the choir-houses were converted into barracks, hos- 
pitals, and places of safe-keeping for English prisoners, 
that Count Pulaski was complimented for his gallantry 
by the presentation of a banner, embroidered by the 
single Sisters, as a token of gratitude for the protection 
he had afforded them. The banner was received by 
him gratefully, and borne in his regiment through the 
campaign, until he fell in the attack upon Savannah, in 
the autumn of 1779. It is now carefully preserved in 
the hall of the Maryland Historical Society, at Balti- 
more. Longfellow has made this incident the subject 
of a highly-wrought poem. 

The name of the town took its origin at the time of 
the first Christmas-eve service, which was held in the 
year 1 741, partly in a stable in the rear of the Eagle 
Hotel. At first the name was Beth-Lecha, meaning the 
house by the river Lecha. Afterwards, on account of 
the service, it was changed, it is said at the suggestion 
of Count Zinzendorf, to that which now prevails. The 



BETHLEHEM. 



41 



old buildings, for the most part, still remain, and are 
objects of curious interest to the many tourists who fre- 
quent the town. The principal ones stand upon Churcli 
Street. Among them may be mentioned the church, a 
large and chaste-looking edifice, kept, as are all their 
buildings, in excellent repair; the old chapel, built in 
1 75 1, and still used for religious services; the Congre- 
gation's House, where was the original chapel and resi- 
dence of the clergy ; the Sisters' and Widows' Houses, 
wherein infirm and aged women find a comfortable 
home, and which still preserve their primitive interior 
arrangement, such as broad oaken staircases, flagged 
pavements, small windows, and low ceilings. The 
graveyard is also kept as heretofore, one of its peculi- 
arities consisting in the uniform plain slab covering the 
remains of poor and rich alike, bearing only the imipar- 
tial records of their life. Nisky Hill, where new and 
beautiful cemetery-grounds have been laid out, forms 
one of the pleasantest walks that the town affords. The 
island in the Lehigh is much resorted to in the proper 
season for picnics and excursions. 

Besides the 3 Moravian church buildings, there are 
churches belonging to the following denominations : 
2 Reformed, 2 Episcopal, 3 Methodist, 2 Roman Cath- 
olic, and 3 Lutheran. The Hall of the Young Men's 
Christian Association and Citizen's Hall are neat and 
substantial buildings, much used for concerts and lec- 
tures, — the people of Bethlehem being justly celebrated 
for their high appreciation of, and skill in, music, and 
the fine arts generally. 

In addition to the public schools, the Moravians 
have an extensive day-school in a commodious building, 

4* 



42 



BETHLEHEM. 



intended chiefly for their own children. The board- 
ing-school for girls — for scholars of any denomination 
— was first opened on the 5th of January, 1749, and has 
since grown to such dimensions as to require for its 
accommodation a suite of large buildings, to which 
additions are constantly made. The average number 
of pupils in attendance there is about 200, represent- 
ing nearly all the States in the Union. Its graduates 
number over 5000, the Moravians having always been 
peculiarly successful in educating those intrusted to 
their charge. 

The largest manufacturing establishment here is that 
of the Bethlehem Iron Company, including within its 
operations, which began in January, 1863, furnaces, 
rolling-mills, machine-shop, and foundry. Its capital 
stock is $1,000,000. The measurement of the three 
stacks is as follows: No. i, 15 by d-T^ feet; No. 2, 15 
by 45 feet; No. 3, 14 by 50 feet. Their combined 
capacity is about 30,000 tons per annum, the largest 
part of which is used in the adjoining rolling-mill, 
whose capacity is 20,000 tons per annum. Its con- 
sumption of raw materials is 70,000 tons of Pennsyl- 
vania hsematite and New Jersey magnetic ore, and from 
70,000 to 75,000 tons of coal. The total number of 
men employed at the works proper is about 700. The 
new building now erecting for the manufacture of iron 
and steel will be, it is said, the largest in this country, 
and one of the largest in existence anywhere. It will 
be 105 feet wide, spanned by an iron and slate roof 
without supporters. It is 30 feet high to the eaves, and 
is in the shape of a double cross, of which the long 
arm (or main building) is 931 feet, and the short arms 



BETHLEHEM. 



43 



140^ feet each, making the area covered 1493 feet by 
105 feet. This is only surpassed by the mill at Creuzot, 
in France, which consists of three buildings 60 by 
1400 feet each. 

The steel-works will start with a capacity of about 
600 tons rails per week, planned and arranged for a 
threefold increase of the same. 

There will be three trains of rolls, say 24, 26, and 
30 inch diameters, driven by two condensing-engines 
of 48 and 56 inches diameter cylinders, of 46 and 48 
inches stroke. 

The mill will be remarkable not only for its enormous 
size and capacity, but for the many new labor-saving 
conveniences introduced. 

The iron-work for the building, as well as the ma- 
chinery, was all made at the company's shops and 
foundry. 

The works of the Lehigh Zinc Company are also on 
a very large scale, employing as they do 700 men, 
including those in the mines, which are located at Frie- 
densville, four miles south. The first discovery of zinc 
on the property now owned and worked by this com- 
pany was made by Prof Roepper in 1845. Now about 
20,000 tons of both blende and earthy ore are mined 
in a year. The company was organized in 1849, ^^^ 
has now a capital of $1,000,000. It is engaged in the 
manufacture of spelter or metallic zinc, for which it has 
twenty-four Belgian furnaces yielding 700 pounds each in 
every twenty-four hours. A portion of this is converted 
into sheet zinc. The works for the manufacture of 
white oxide are 1390 square feet of grate surface, and 
yield about 3500 tons per annum. Here was the be- 



44 BETHLEHEM. 

ginning of the manufacture of these articles in America, 
and it is thought that its products are very near in 
quality to the best imported. Its annual consumption 
of coal is about 30,000 tons. A brief description of 
the process of manufacture may be interesting. 

The ore after being crushed fine is mixed with fine 
coal in the proportion of 50 pounds of coal to 100 
pounds of ore, and in this condition is put into open 
furnaces, where the zinc is liberated in a gaseous form. 
The oxide of zinc, which is used for paint, is formed 
by forcing cold air through the mass of coal and ore in 
the furnace, which drives the gaseous zinc through 
various arrangements until it falls into long muslin bags, 
in the shape of a pure white powder. After again pass- 
ing through bolting-cloths, it is ready for market. The 
metallic zinc is made by excluding the air when it is in 
a gaseous state. Such of the spelter as is to be rolled 
into sheet zinc is remelted and run into ingots of the 
proper size, and, at a moderate heat, passed through 
the rolls. The process of rolling into sheets is very 
similar to that employed in rolling sheet iron, except 
that it takes rather longer and is a more delicate opera- 
tion. 

One of the great difficulties which the company has 
had to encounter in working its mines, is the large 
amount of water which must be kept under control. 
To obviate it, various expedients have been resorted to, 
drains, pumps, engines, etc., until, the resources and 
endurance of the company being wellnigh exhausted, 
its engineer, Mr. John West, matured a plan of raising 
15,000 gallons of water per minute from 300 feet depth, 
and late in 187 1 the new engine, pumps, and shaft 



BETHLEHEM. 



45 



needed for this purpose were put into successful opera- 
tion. The engine was made by Messrs. Merrick, of 
Philadelphia, the pumps, boilers, and mountings by 
Messrs. I. P. Morris & Co., of the same city. The 
timber for shaft and pump-rods was contracted for in 
Georgia. 

The engine (which was three years in building) has 
a pumping capacity of 15,000 gallons per minute, and 
may be run to 17,000 in case of emergency, raising 
water from a depth of 300 feet. It weighs 657 tons, 
and, including the pumps and boilers, the total weight 
of the machinery is 1000 tons. Size of cylinder, iioj^ 
inches in diameter ; length of stroke, 10 feet ; estimated 
at 3000 horse -power. The bob wall of solid masonry, 
9 feet thick, was commenced on a plat of solid rock, 
114 feet below the surface; the foundation for the 
engine is 32 feet deep below the bed-plate. The heavi- 
est pieces of iron in the engine are the sections of 
beams, and weigh 24 tons. There are two pieces of 
wrought-iron weighing 16 tons each. The fly-wheels 
weigh 75 tons each; crank-pins i ton each. The piston- 
rod is 14 inches in diameter. The crosshead weighs 8 
tons. The connecting-rods have 9-inch necks, and are 
15 inches in the middle, 41 feet 2^ inches long, and 
weigh II tons each. There are two air-pumps, 50 
inches in diameter each. 

The work of " The President " (so far as known, the 
most powerful stationary engine in the world) is at 
present to drive two plunger pumps, each 30 inches in 
diameter by 10 feet stroke. They will throw 735 gal- 
lons per stroke. The engine can work comfortably at 
12 strokes per minute, and the power is more than 



46 BETHLEHEM. 

adequate, and the dimensions of the shaft (30^ by 
21^^ feet in the clear) ample for doubling this num- 
ber of pumps, and carrying all to a depth of 300 feet, 
or 178 feet below the present bottom of the mines, 
with power still in reserve for what may be required 
btlow. 

In addition to its other works, the company has a 
cooper-shop run by the water-power of the canal, with 
a capacity of 20,000 casks per year. 

Besides these establishments, there are brass-works 
(manufacturing valves, cocks, whistles, cups, lubrica- 
tors, etc.), flour-mills, shovel-factory, barrel-factory, 
carriage-factories, etc. There are published here three 
weekly and two daily newspapers. 

By the Lehigh and Lackawanna Railroad, direct com- 
munication has been opened with the extensive slate 
quarries at Bath and Chapman's. There are two na- 
tional banks, with a combined capital of ^800,000, be- 
sides which there are two savings banks with a cornbined 
capital of ^36,000. Both boroughs are well supplied 
with water and gas, and are growing rapidly in popula- 
tion, which now numbers nearly 10,000. Many hand- 
some residences have been erected on both sides of the 
river, and the continuous importance and prosperity of 
the towns as a business and educational centre seem now 
to be well assured. It has been for a number of years a 
favorite place of resort for travelers, and the points of in- 
terest hitherto attracting them are largely on the increase. 

South Bethlehem is the seat of the Lehigh University, 
which was formally opened on September ist, 1866. 
It was founded by the Hon. Asa Packer, of Mauch 
Chunk, President of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, who 



BETHLEHEM. 47 

appropriated to this object the sum of $500,000 and a 
very eligible tract of land containing fifty-six acres, in 
addition to which he has subsequently made liberal dona- 
tions at various times. The system adopted here, while 
it does not ignore the classics, proposes to give particu- 
lar attention to those branches of a liberal or poly- 
technic education which tend to develop the vast re- 
sources of the country, such as Engineering, Chemistry, 
Metallurgy, Architecture, and Construction. Its situa- 
tion among the many industrial works surrounding 
Bethlehem is especially adapted for securing to the 
student such a practical education. Through the gen- 
erosity of the founder, and by a resolution of the 
Trustees, passed in July, 1871, tuition was declared to 
be hereafter free in all branches and classes. The 
personal expenses of the student need not exceed two 
hundred and fifty dollars per year. 

For the year 1872-3 there were 13 professors and 
instructors, and 120 students. While the University is 
under the auspices of the Episcopal Church, no undue 
influence is brought to bear upon the students contrary 
to their own religious predilections or the express 
wishes of their parents. Packer Hall, the principal 
University building, is of stone, 213 feet long, and is 
one of the handsomest and completest college edifices 
in the country. It is built on a gentle declivity of the 
Lehigh Mountain range, in the midst of a park of 
forest-trees, and commands a beautiful and unobstructed 
view for twenty miles. Near it are erected the obser- 
vatory, houses for the President and professors, and 
Christmas Hall, a commodious brick building contain- 
ing rooms for boarders, etc. 



48 EAST PENN JUNCTION.— ALLENTOWN, 

The Episcopalians have also, admirably situated a 
short distance from the depot, a promising girls' board- 
ing-school, called Bishopthorpe, where a thorough edu- 
cation is given. 

The offices of the Superintendent and Assistant 
General Superintendent of the Company, and of the 
President's Assistant, are located in this borough, in 
commodious buildings adjoining the depot. 

EAST PENN JUNCTION. 

The station here is the junction of the East Penn 
Railroad, extending to Reading, Harrisburg, Pittsburg, 
and thence to the Great West, the shortest and most 
favorable route thither from New York. 

Near by are the blast-furnaces of the Lehigh Iron 
Company, with a capital of ^500,000, and employing 
over 250 men at their works, mines, and quarries. 
They consume annually about 35,000 tons of coal, 
49jOoo tons of ore, and 26,000 tons of limestone. 
Their disbursements for labor and materials amount to 
about ^720,000 per annum. Their motive power con- 
sists of two large condensing steam engines with a 
combined capacity of over 1000 horse-power. The 
works produce per annum about 22,000 tons of foundry 
and forge pig-iron. The office of the company is at 
Allentown, and is connected with the furnaces by their 
own telegraph wire. 

ALLENTOWN. 

This city is situated at the junction of the Lehigh 
River with the Little Lehigh and Jordan Creek. The 
Jordan runs through the northern part of the town. 
The eminence upon which the town is built commands 



ALLENTO IVN. 



49 



an unusually beautiful prospect, sloping gradually to 
the river on the east, and to the creek on the north. It 
derives its name, some say, from James Allen, who 
laid it out in 1762. Others say it derives its name from 
William Allen, the father of James, who was a particu- 
lar friend of the Penn family, from whom he inherited 
larg^ tracts of land. He was one of the most distin- 
guished citizens of Philadelphia, having been for a 
number of years Chief Justice of the Supreme Court 
of Pennsylvania. The Greenleaf family at one time 
owned nearly the whole of the ground now comprised 
within the city limits. During the war of the Revolu- 
tion, among many valuable articles from Philadelphia 
which were concealed here, was the chime belonging to 
Christ Church of that city. Originally the town was 
known as Northampton, as is stated in the assessment list 
from 1762 to 1800, where its present name is first found. 
In 1826 it was incorporated with its former name, and it 
was not until 1838 that it reassumed the name of Allen- 
town. Tt was chartered as a city in 1867. The town 
for many years did not progress very rapidly, owing 
mainly, perhaps, to the difficulty (because of its eleva- 
tion) of procuring the necessary supply of water for 
domestic purposes. A great fire in 1848 gave a tem- 
porary shock to its prosperity, but was eventually the 
means of infusing new life into the town, a much finer 
set of buildings taking the place of those destroyed. 
The completion of the Lehigh Valley and East Penn 
Railroads gave great impetus to its growth. 

It now presents a beautiful and substantial appear- 
ance. The streets are laid out at right angles, and are 
broad and clean, adorned with shade-trees, and well 
c 5 



so 



ALLENTOWN. 



lighted with gas. The main street, Hamilton, is built 
up for a mile and a half. In the heart of the town is a 
large square, which is the centre of a very extensive 
business. Within a few years, there have been erected 
a number of handsome private residences, many of 
which are surrounded with large and beautiful gardens. 
A street railway runs from the depot to the principal 
parts of the city. The scenery and natural curiosities 
of the city and neighborhood are well worth seeing. 
The view from the Big or Bauer's Rock, near by 
(about looo feet high), is very extensive and pictu- 
resque, embracing as it does a rich variety of landscape 
and industry in both the Saucon and Lehigh Valleys. 
There are several romantic springs in the neighborhood, 
much resorted to by strangers. One of these supplies 
the city with water, and another — four miles distant — 
turns a saw-mill and grist-mill immediately at the place 
at which it issues from the ground. It also forms Cedar 
Creek, upon which there are a large number of mills, 
to accommodate whose business an extension of the 
railroad is contemplated. A number of trout are raised 
upon this stream. A very substantial and tasteful 
iron bridge has lately been erected over the Lehigh, 
while the stone one crossing the Jordan Creek and 
leading into the main street is perhaps the largest 
structure of the kind in Pennsylvania. It consists of 
19 arches, is about 1800 feet long, and 50 feet high, 
and cost originally $20,000. 

AUentown has many advantages as a manufacturing 
town. Its situation in the midst of a rich agricultural 
district; its nearness to valuable beds of iron ore, zinc, 
limestone, cement, etc.; its railroad and canal accom- 



ALLENTOWN. 



51 



modations, and the peculiarly favorable sites for manu- 
factories, all point it out as the seat of one of the largest 
cities in Pennsylvania. The population is over 15,000. 

Its chief industrial establishments are those of the 
Allentown RoUing-Mill Company, a stock company 
with a capital of $2,000,000 ($1,000,000 paid up) and 
employing nearly 1000 men. It has in the various de- 
partments of manufacture five trains of three high rolls, 
and three of two high rolls. It uses almost exclusively 
the pig-iron made in its own furnaces, and has a capa- 
city of 20,000 tons per annum. In the year 1871, it 
used of pig-iron 17,000 tons, of old rails 5500 tons, 
and of coal 27,000 tons. The company is now erect- 
ing additional rolling-mills, to manufacture 30,000 tons 
rails, 4000 tons bar-iron, 400 tons bolts, nuts, etc. In 
the new mill, now nearly completed, steel head-rails 
for mines will be made. It also manufactures en- 
gines and other machinery. The company has lately 
bought out the Roberts Iron Company, having two 
stacks, measuring respectively 15 hy 6ij4 feet and 15 
by 67 feet, with a capacity of 17,000 tons of pig- 
iron per annum. It has also purchased the machine- 
shops of Thayer, Erdman, Wilson & Co., and the 
Lehigh Rolling Mill. 

The Allentown Iron Works, — a stock company. 
Capital, $800,000. This company has five furnaces, 
with size and capacity as follows : 



No. I, 16 feet boshes, 


60 feet high, 


200 tons 


per week. 


" 2, 16 " 


II 


60 " " 


200 " 


II II 


" 3.16 " 


" 


60 " " 


200 " 


" 


" 4.14 " 


11 


60 " " 


200 " 


" 


" 5.17 " 


" 


60 " " 


250 " 


" " 



52 ALLENTOWN. 

The company employs 600 men. It obtains its ore 
from Berks and Lehigh Counties, and from New Jersey. 

Fire-Brick Works. Employ about 50 men, and pro- 
duce about 1,800,000 bricks per annum, used chiefly by 
the works in the neighborhood. The clay comes from 
South Amboy, New Jersey. 

Cole, Heilman & Brown's Boiler Shops. Employ 60 
men in making stacks, boilers, tanks, etc. 

There are also several other rolling-mills (the Glen, 
Hope, Jordan, etc.), foundries, and machine-shops^ 
steam-forge, spike-works, brass-works, woolen-mills, 
planing-mills, carriage- and wagon-factories, mowing- 
machine-works, sash-factories, and other branches of 
manufactures. In addition to which, there is a very 
large wholesale and retail business done at the various 
stores. 

There are three national banks, with an aggregate 
capital of $1,050,000, beside several savings-banks 
(with an authorized capital of $710,000) and private 
banking-houses. 

The new county jail is one of the handsomest and 
most complete structures of the kind in the State. It 
is built mostly of Potsdam sandstone, and cost nearly 
$250,000. The court-house, erected several years ago 
at a cost of $60,000, is also in good keeping with the 
other public buildings. The Academy of Natural 
Sciences has lately been formed, and possesses a con- 
siderable library and cabinet. 

Allen town has long been justly celebrated for the 
interest taken in educational matters by its citizens. 
This has been manifested in the establishment of 
numerous public schools of the highest order, which 



ALLENTOWN. 53 

have been supported in the most liberal manner. 
Recently there have been erected two beautiful school- 
houses, constructed of sandstone, and arranged and 
furnished after the most approved models, one costing 
$70,000 and the other $60,000. A third new one, of 
brick, and complete in all its parts and appointments, 
lately built, cost $52,000. In the city, which is a sep- 
arate school district, there are 56 teachers and 3150 
scholars. 

Among the private educational establishments, the 
foremost is Muhlenburg College, first founded in 1848, 
but re-established under new and favorable auspices in 
1867. Two-thirds of the trustees are elected by the 
stockholders, and one-third by the Evangelic Lutheran 
Synod. The buildings of the institution (in which the 
accommodations are of the most approved character) 
are eligibly situated in the southeastern part of the 
city, surrounded by about five acres of ground, devoted 
to its exclusive use. They present a front of 120 feet, 
with a centre building of 50 feet, and two wings each 
of 35 feet. In front there is a fine lawn adorned with 
shade-trees, and in the rear a large campus supplied 
witli a gymnasium. Pupils are admitted as they are 
found qualified into their proper departments of study, 
which embrace all those branches which are deemed 
essential to a thorough education. During the year 
ending June, 1873, there were in attendance 135 stu- 
dents, and the Faculty and instructors numbered 9. 

The Allentown Female College occupies a beautiful 
and healthful site in the northeastern portion of the 
city, with ample buildings well ordered in all their 
apartments. The course of instruction is divided into 

5* 



^4 ALLENTOWiX 

Primary, Academic, and Collegiate, and is meant to 
include all the principal branches of a liberal educa- 
tion. During the past year, there were 82 scholars in 
attendance, and a board of 9 instructors. 

There are 3 Lutheran, 3 German Evangelical, 2 Epis- 
copal, 2 Reformed, and 2 Roman Catholic churches, 
and I belonging to each of the following denomina- 
tions : 2 Baptist, 2 Methodist, Presbyterian, and 2 
United Brethren. 

The Fair Grounds contain twelve acres. The Floral 
Hall is built in four wings from a centre ; each wing is 
one hundred feet long and two stories high. The 
lower part is for vegetable and floral display ; the upper 
part is for domestic manufactures. The race-track is 
one-third of a mile around. There are stalls for one 
hundred head of horses and cattle. Average number 
of exhibitors, 1000; average entries, 4000; average 
annual attendance, 40,000; average receipts, $7000; 
average premium list, $3500. Water-pipes are laid 
through the grounds and buildings. The number of 
life-members is about 800. The fairs held here, which 
were the first established in the Lehigh Valley, dating 
back to 1852, are, as may be judged from these statistics, 
among the most successful in any part of the country. 

The Opera House is a very fine building, 60 feet 
wide and 120 feet deep, three stories high; besides 
which there are other public buildings, Odd-Fellows' 
and Masonic halls, etc. 

There are nine or ten papers published here, in both 
the German and English languages (among them two 
dailies and several religious magazines), with a large 
and increasing circulation. 



CATASAUQUA. 55 



CATASAUQUA. 

This town takes its name from the creek which here 
empties into the river, and whose signification is 
parched land. In 1839 there were but two houses, 
one at each extreme end of the town plot. During 
that year, a company of gentlemen, mostly of Phila- 
delphia, proposed the erection here (because of the 
proximity of the iron and limestone beds) of an iron 
furnace for the purpose of making iron with anthracite 
coal, which had been successfully accomplished in 
Wales a few years before by Mr. George Crane. The 
services of Mr. David Thomas, who was engaged there 
with Mr. Crane, were secured, and in 1840 the first 
furnace was completed under his direction and super- 
intendence. Since then, the town has steadily pro- 
gressed, until now it bids fair to become one of the 
most important in the Valley. It is located in the 
midst of a rich iron-ore and limestone region, and 
possesses unusual railroad and canal facilities, thus 
marking it out as a peculiarly favorable opening for 
manufacturing establishments. It was incorporated as 
a borough in 1853, and contains a population of 6000. 
The town is well supplied with gas and water, and few 
places can boast of so perfect a drainage. It has twelve 
public schools, contained in four buildings, and com- 
prising about 700 pupils. Its high-school will com- 
pare favorably with any in the State. It has a fine 
town-hall, erected at a cost of ^15,000. On the 
western bank of the river, opposite the borough, there 



56 



CATASAUQUA. 



is a beautiful cemetery, called " Fair- View," command- 
ing a magnificent view of the town and surrounding 
country. In it there has been erected a very handsome 
marble monument to the memory of the soldiers who 
fell in the late civil war, costing $6000. 

In enumerating the industrial works coming properly 
under the head of Catasauqua, we include not only 
those actually located in the borough, but all, whether 
on one side of the river or the other, stretching from 
Allentown Furnace to this station. 

The Crane Iron Company is a stock company, with a 
capital of $1,200,000, and has six furnaces. The size 
and capacity of each are as follows : 



No. I, II feet boshes, 


47 feet 


high, 


140 tons 


per week 


" 2, 13 " 


47 " 


" 


150 " 




" 3. IS " 


47 " 


' ' 


175 " 




" 4, 18 " 


55 " 


" 


250 " 




" 5. 18 " " 


55 " 


" 


250 " 




•' 6, i6i " 


60 •' 


" 


230 " 





The haematite ore is obtained from Northampton, 
Lehigh, and Berks Counties, the magnetic from Lehigh 
Mountain, Pa., and Sussex and Morris Counties, New 
Jersey, and the limestone from the neighborhood. For 
the year 1872 this establishment consumed 108,274 
tons of coal, 138,392 tons of iron ore, and 82,401 
tons of limestone. Iron made during the year 54,037 
tons. In connection with and for the use of the fur- 
naces, there are car-shops, foundry and machine-shops, 
employing a large number of hands. Exclusive of 
miners, this company gives employment to about 1000 
men. 



CATASAUQUA. 57 

The Catasauqua Manufacturing Company has a capi- 
tal of $300,000. Its rolling-mill is engaged in manu- 
facturing bar-iron, sheet-iron, and railroad-axles. It 
has a capacity of 13,000 tons per annum, and employs 
350 men, using exclusively the pig-iron made in the 
Lehigh Valley. This company fes recently bought out 
the Lehigh Manufacturing Company. In this branch 
of their works they employ 150 men, and make mer- 
chant bar-iron of various sizes. The ore for fettling 
the puddling furnaces is obtained from Port Henry, 
Lake Champlain, N.Y. 

The amount of wages paid by the various manu- 
facturing establishments in the borough averages 
$32,000 per month. 

In the Catasauqua Car Works (Frederick & Co.) are 
made all kinds of cars, except passenger cars (coal, 
ore, freight, flats, etc.). They employ 130 men, and 
construct the whole of the car, except wheels and 
axles, having a foundry of their own, where castings 
of different descriptions are made. For the body of 
the cars, white oak exclusively is used, the lining being 
of white and yellow pine. In the foundry, nineteen 
tons of pig-iron are used per week, and twelve tons of 
forged iron. The capacity of the establishment is one 
hundred and fifty coal cars per month. 

The Lehigh Car-Wheel and Axle Works employ 
85 men, and consume from twenty to twenty-five tons 
of charcoal pig-iron a day. The capacity is 25,000 
car-wheels per annum. Their iron comes mostly from 
Salisbury, Connecticut. 

The Lehigh Fire-Brick Factory, owned by David 
Thomas (burnt in 1872, rebuilt same year), employs 40 



58 CATASAUQUA. 

men and boys, and has a capacity of 2,000,000 bricks 
per annum, which are used in the Valley. The clay 
comes from New Jersey, and the sand from the neigh- 
borhood. 

In addition, there are other smaller foundries and 
machine-shops, in which all manner of castings, steam- 
engines, etc. are made; also, a shovel-factory, where 
thirty-five different shovels, spades, and hoes are made ; 
a factory of circular, cross-cut, and other kinds of 
saws; a saw- mill, with which is connected a planing- 
mill, sash and door factory, etc. Very large limestone 
quarries abound in this neighborhood, and are being 
extensively worked. 

Of churches, there are 2 Presbyterian, 2 Roman 
Catholic (English and German), i Lutheran, i Method- 
ist, I Evangelical, i Reformed. The Episcopalians, 
Free Methodist, and Welsh Baptists each have a mission 
here. There are two weekly papers published in the 
town. There is a national bank, with a capital of 
^500,000. 

The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad connects at 
Catasauqua with the Lehigh Valley Railroad. This 
road was built in 1856, and opened in 1857; it is 
twenty miles long, and has several branches. It cost 
$500,000, and was built by the Lehigh Crane Iron 
Company and the Thomas Iron Company, for the pur- 
pose of reaching the great iron-ore beds owned by 
these companies, the ore being now brought from the 
mines direct to the mouth of the furnaces. About four 
miles from Catasauqua, this road crosses the Jordan 
Creek on a splendid iron bridge, said to be one of 
the largest and handsomest in the country. It is iioo 



HO K END A UQUA. 59 

feet in length, with 11 arches. Each truss is 16 feet 
nigh. The cost of the bridge was about $78,000. 

Near the junction of the Catasauqua Creek and the 
Lehigh River, just above Catasauqua, stands an old and 
crumbling stone house, which is rendered of interesting 
importance by having once been the residence of 
George Taylor, one of the signers of the Declaration 
of Independence. The walls of the building are nearly 
two hundred years old, and when laid were very thick 
and strong. The house was frequently used as a place 
of refuge and defense against attacks of Indians. 

HOKENDAUQUA. 

This town is named from a small creek which empties 
into the Lehigh about half a mile north of it. It is an 
Indian name, and signifies searching for lajid, and was 
probably used by the aborigines in speaking to the 
surveyors or first settlers. It was laid out in 1855, 
and contains a population of 1200. The Thomas 
Iron Works are located here, consisting now of four fur- 
naces, which are said to be the largest and to have the 
most powerful blast machinery in the United States, 
in which also their product of pig-iron is unexcelled. 
Two more furnaces are now building, and will soon be 
completed and in full operation. They are considered 
to be model furnaces, having all the valuable and recent 
improvements added to them. Their dimensions and 
capacity are as follows : 

No. I, 18 feet boshes, 60 feet high, 265 tons per week. 

" 2, 18 " " 60 " " 265 ' 

" 3. 18 " " 55 " " 250 ' 

" 4. 18 " " 55 " " 250 



Co CO PL A V. 

There are five blast-engines, three of looo horse-power 
each, and two of 700 horse-power each. They are un- 
usually beautiful specimens of workmanship. The fly- 
wheels are twenty-seven feet in diameter. They are also 
used for supplying the works and the town with water. 
The amount of coal consumed in the works is some- 
thing over 100,000 tons per annum. The capital of 
the company is $1,750,000. In connection with the 
furnaces, there are here machine-shops, repair-shops, 
and car-shops. Altoge-ther, 400 men are employed. 
The only church building here is one belonging to the 
Presbyterians. There are two furnaces at Alburtis, 
twenty-five miles west, on the Catasauqua and Fogels- 
ville Railroad, which are owned and operated by the 
same company. 

COPLAY. 

This town (formerly Schreiber's) is named from a 
creek emptying into the Lehigh near Catasauqua, mean- 
ing, in the original Indian spelling (Copeechan), aji/ie 
7'unning streain. It has been settled within a few years, 
and is the site of the Lehigh Valley Iron Works, which 
consist of three stacks of the following dimensions : 



No. I, 


14 by 45 feet, 


" 2, 


16 by 53 " 


" 3. 


16 by 55 " 



Their aggregate capacity is about 300 tons per week, 
and the number of men directly employed in them is 
100. The extensive and valuable limestone quarries 
immediately adjoining seem almost inexhaustible. The 
capital of the company is $600,000. 



WHITE HALL. 6 1 

The Coplay Cement Company, organized and char- 
tered in 1866, capital $100,000. The mill is driven with 
steam-power, and contains one cracker and three sets 
of four-feet Esopus stone. There are in use four per- 
petual or draw kilns, thirty feet high and nine feet in 
diameter. The capacity of the works is 60,000 barrels 
per annum. In connection with the mill is an exten- 
sive cooper-shop. The number of men employed alto- 
gether is 50. The quarries are near the kilns, and 
contain a solid body of cement-stone, the thickness 
of whose stratum is as yet unknown. Its quality is 
thought by many to be superior to any in the market, 
recommendations to this effect having been frequently 
given. 

WHITE HALL. 

An outlet for business transacted by the railroad 
with the surrounding country. The name of White 
Hall Township was derived from the white-painted 
country-house of Lynford Lardner, Esq., of Philadel- 
phia, which was a favorite resort of himself and friends, 
especially in the season when grouse abounded. The 
township, in 1763, was the scene of murderous attacks 
by the savage Indians. In this same township is the 
famous Egypt Church, the records of which date back 
as far as 1733. The first church was erected in 1742, 
being a small log building, with loose planks laid on 
logs for seats. The second church was built in 1785, 
and the third in 1851. 



62 / LAUR Y.—R O CKDA L E. 



LAURY. 



There are extensive slate quarries near by, and an 
old-established grist-mill. Large quantities of iron 
ore are also mined in the neighborhood for the furnaces 
along the river. The soil in this vicinity is very fertile, 
and the country unusually picturesque. 



ROCKDALE. 

This village is beautifully situated at the head of a 
pool of water, caused by the canal dam erected about 
a mile below, from which large quantities of excellent 
ice are annually shipped to Philadelphia. At this place 
great difficulty was experienced in the original con- 
struction of the road, owing to the barrier of slate- 
rock which abounded in such profusion. So steep 
and rugged were the hills that the engineers could not 
locate the road until the workmen had first gone 
through and cut paths with their picks and shovels. 
Even then they were obliged to be let down at points 
by means of ropes, at imminent risk to their lives. 
Parts of the cuts were at the height of no feet above 
the road-bed, and the cost of making the road in this 
section exceeded the rate of $100,000 per mile. 



SLATINGTON. 



SLATINGTON. 



63 



This borough was laid out by the Lehigh Slate Com- 
pany in 185 1, although some quarrying had been done 
previous to this date. It has grown very rapidly in 
interest and importance, and is now the centre of a 
very extensive business in its specialty. The borough 
is divided by Trout Creek, which supplies fine water- 
power to the various establishments located on its 
banks. The population of the two settlements is about 
2500, exclusive of Williamstown, distant about half of 
a mile. There is a Presbyterian church, and one used 
in common by the German Reformed and Lutheran 
congregations, also a Methodist Episcopal, and a Welsh 
Calvinistic Methodist. The Independent (Welsh) 
Evangelical congregation worship in the town-hall, 
and occasional services are held by the Episcopalians. 

One weekly paper is published, and there is a Dime 
Savings Fund for deposit and discount. 

The Lehigh Slate Company have extensive quarries, 
employing about 100 men, and having a capital of 
^100,000. They furnish school and mantel slate, 
having large factories in connection with their quar- 
ries. 

The Franklin Quarries are about one mile from the 
borough, and employ about 80 men in getting out roof- 
ing slate. 

The Girard Company manufacture roofing slate, and 
employ 80 men. 

The Blue Mountain Slate Quarry is at Williamstown, 
and employs 60 men. 



64 SLA TING TON. 

David Williams's Factory employs 50 men in the 
manufacture of school and roofing slates. 

Besides these, there are the River-side Slate Co., the 
Blue Vein Company, the Star Slate Company, and 
other smaller establishments; having altogether, it is 
calculated, an aggregate capital of $500,000, and em- 
ploying in all about 600 men. 

It is the most extensive slate region in the country, 
and, it is thought, furnishes the finest quality of any, 
being of pure clay. The Capitol at Washington has 
been roofed with slates from these quarries, made ex- 
pressly half an inch in thickness, and a number of ship- 
ments have been made to the regions of the Rocky 
Mountains. 

During the year 1872, there were shipped by the 
different operators — 

Of roofing slate 61,248 squares. 

" school slate ..... 11,047 cases. 
" mantels and blackboards . . 3,747 " 

In addition to which, there were sold at the quarries, 
and not shipped by railroad, 5754 squares, and of 
flagging 20,000 feet. 

Some of the quarries may be seen on the left of the 
track, as we go north from the station. 

From Slatington, a branch of the Lehigh Valley 
Railroad runs three and a half miles to Slatedale, where 
there are very extensive quarries and factories, employ- 
ing 100 men, with a capital of $200,000. 

In addition to the slate-factories at Slatington there 
is a foundry and machine-shop, where are made steam- 





THE LEHIGH GAP. 



■It-fX" 



Page 65 . 



LEHIGH GAP. 65 

engines, pumps, slate-sawing-machines, etc. ; there are 
also a planing- and saw-mill, flour-mill, etc. 

It is in contemplation to build a railroad to intersect 
the branch at Slatedale and run to Hamburg, Berks 
County, passing through an unusually rich farming 
country. Surveys have also been made and work com- 
menced for an extension to this point of the Wilming- 
ton and Reading Railroad, which will form a direct 
southern outlet for coal, slate, and other products. 



LEHIGH GAP. 

Here the river Lehigh forces its way through the 
Kittatinny or Blue Mountains, which form the dividing 
line between Carbon County and Northampton and 
Lehigh Counties. The scenery at this point, but more 
especially as it is neared on either side, is sublime. It 
will well repay the traveler to stop off for a day and 
obtain the many picturesque views with which the 
neighborhood abounds. The craggy cliffs tower to a 
great height, and after scaling the mountains the tourist 
is amply compensated by the diversified and extensive 
prospect which the eye then commands, combining 
woodlands, and valleys, and mountains, and fields, in 
rare variety and beauty. On the western side is a lofty 
ridge, near the summit of which appears, emerging from 
the surrounding woods, a lonely pile of rocks, called 
''The Devil's Pulpit," upon which grow a few blasted 
pines. The shattered rocks thrown together in wild 
confusion, and the strata of rounded stones found here- 
abouts, have led some persons to suppose that the Lehigh, 

6* 



66 KITTA TINNY.— PARR YVILLE. 

obstructed by the mountains, was formerly dammed up 
into a lake, which at length burst through what is now 
known as the Gap. 

A factory is located here for the manufacture of 
mineral paint, the ore for which is found in the imme- 
diate neighborhood and is considered to be of excellent 
quality. The capacity of the works is about 500 tons 
per month. 

KITTATINNY. 

A brick-yard is situated here, having a capacity of 
3,000,000 bricks per year. 



PARRYVILLE. 

This busy village is situated on the eastern bank of 
the Lehigh River, near its junction with the Poho Poco 
Creek, and is five miles south of Mauch Chunk, where 
much of the capital by which its business is conducted 
belongs. It was settled about the year 1786, and con- 
tains now 800 inhabitants. It contains 2 churches, 
Methodist Episcopal, and Evangelical. 

The works of the Carbon Iron Company give to the 
place its business. The amount of its capital stock is 
$600,000, and there are three furnaces, employing 150 
men. Their dimensions are as follows : 

No. I, 12 feet bosh, 52 feet high. 
" 2, 15 " " 52 " 
" 3, 18 " " 65 " 

Their estimated capacity is 600 tons per week. The 



LEHIGHTON AND WEISSPORT. 67 

haematite ore used in the furnaces is mined partly in 
the neighborhood and partly in Lehigh and Berks 
Counties. The magnetic ore is brought from near 
Dover, New Jersey, and the limestone from Northamp- 
ton County. 

A short distance below the village, on the west bank 
of the river, is a tract of fifteen or twenty acres, con- 
taining rocks of regular proportions and of blackest 
hue, for some time known as "The Devil's Garden," 
about which there are told some queer and quaint 
stories. 



LEHIGHTON AND WEISSPORT. 

These two boroughs are situated, the first on the 
western and the second on the eastern bank of the 
river, and are connected by a substantial wooden 
bridge, just above the junction of the Mahoning Creek 
with the Lehigh. 

Lehighton was laid out some sixty years ago, by 
Col. Jacob Weiss and William Henry, the elevated 
piece of land upon which it is located giving an un- 
usually favorable locality for a settlement. It contains 
about 1500 inhabitants, and, besides the usual number 
of hotels, stores, school-houses, etc., has two extensive 
tanneries, grist-mills, wagon- and carriage-, and furni- 
ture-factories, etc. The chief industrial establishment 
is the Stove Works, situated a short distance above the 
depot, employing on an average about 40 men. 
Although but recently put into operation, they have 
already built up a large and growing business. They 



68 LEHIGHTON AND WEISS PORT. 

make cooking-stoves chiefly, although other descrip- 
tions have also been successfully manufactured, all 
of them from their own designs and patterns, for some 
of which a good reputation seems acquired. In addi- 
tion to their regular business, this company are also 
turning out considerable castings for sewing-machines, 
and a large amount of car-boxes. 

The town contains a Methodist Episcopal church. 
Services are also held by the Presbyterians, Lutherans, 
and the Reformed Church. 

Near the town is situated a mineral spring, the waters 
of which have proved very beneficial in several cases 
of disease and debility. It was discovered more than 
a century ago, and known then as " The Spring of the 
Healing Waters." As early as 1748 a petition was pre- 
sented to the justices of Bucks County (of which this 
region was then a part) asking that a good wagon-road 
might be constructed from the King's road, near Beth- 
lehem, to the Mahoning Creek, that persons might 
have easy access to this spring. 

The grounds of the Carbon County Agricultural 
Society are located a short distance beyond, and are 
well supplied with the usual arrangements and accom- 
modations for the annual fairs, the first of which was 
held in the fall of 1858. We would recommend to the 
traveler a drive through the Mahoning Valley near by, 
extending for fourteen miles, to Tamaqua. The scenery 
on either side of the mountains is of the most pictu- 
resque description, and sufficiently diversified to main- 
tain one's interest throughout. 

The history of this section of the county is pecu- 
liarly interesting. Here was situated the tract of land 
known among the fugitives from Wyoming as ''The 



LEHIGHTON AND WEISSPORT. 69 

Great Swamp," or '' Shades of Death," afterwards 
called Towamensing, which is an Indian word, signi- 
fying wilderness ; the only inhabitant of which at 
one time was a celebrated recluse, generally entitled 
'' The Hermit of the Shades of Death," or '' The Blue 
Mountain Hermit," the hero of at least one entertain- 
ing story. 

The first settlement in the county was made by the 
Moravian missionaries, in the year 1746, at Gnaden- 
hiitten, near Lehighton, which became a most encour- 
aging field, the Indian congregation alone numbering 
five hundred persons, the ministers being obliged to 
preach out-of-doors. The Rev. David Brainerd and 
the Rev. David Zeisberger were among those who 
labored here. Finally the settlement was removed to 
the north side of the river, and called New Gnaden- 
hlitten, the site of the present Weissport. 

After Braddock's defeat, in 1755, the whole frontier 
was open to the inroads of the savage foe, and all the 
inhabitants lived in a state of constant terror. On the 
night of November 24th, 1755, the mission-house at 
Mahoning was attacked and burnt by a party of French 
Indians, and eleven of the settlers cruelly murdered. 
After the enemy had retired, the remains of the mar- 
tyrs were gathered and interred. A plain slab in the 
old graveyard (within a short distance of the depot at 
Lehighton) marks the place, and bears a suitable in- 
scription. A few years ago a small white marble monu- 
ment was also erected to their memory by a citizen of 
Bethlehem. 

As late as 1780, the Gilbert family, living in this 
neighborhood, were carried off into a bitterly painful 



yo LEHIGHTON AND WEISSPORT. 

captivity by a party of Indians, who took them to 
Canada and there separated them. At the time of its 
occurrence, this event caused intense excitement 
throughout the State, and several full and interesting 
accounts of it were written and published. 

The Fort Allen Hotel in Weissport occupies the spot 
upon which the log fort was built by Benjamin Frank- 
lin, who was charged by the governor with the defense 
of the northwestern frontier. The well constructed by 
this famous printer, statesman, and warrior is still in 
a good state of preservation. 

An extract from one of his letters to the governor 
reveals a curious state of morals then existing : 

*'We had for our chaplain a zealous Presbyterian 
minister, Mr. Beatty, who complained to me that the 
men did not generally attend his prayers and exhorta- 
tions. When they enlisted, they were promised, be- 
sides their pay and provisions, a gill of rum a day, 
which was punctually served out to them, half in the 
morning and half in the evening. I said to Mr. Beatty, 
' It is, perhaps, below the dignity of your profession to 
act as steward of the rum ; but if you were to distribute 
only just after prayers, you would have them all about 
you.' He liked the thought, undertook the task, with 
the help of a few hands, to deal out the liquor, exe- 
cuted it to satisfaction, and never were prayers more 
generally or punctually attended. So I think this 
method preferable to the punishment inflicted by some 
military laws for non-attendance on divine service." 

At Weissport, a rolling-mill is now again in active 



PACKERTON. 71 

operation, containing two heating furnaces and three 
double puddling furnaces, witli a full complement of 
rolls and other machinery necessary to turn out thirty- 
live tons per day of merchant bar-iron, scrolls, band- 
iron, etc. The number of men employed is about 100. 
It is intended shortly to increase the capacity of the 
works, and to add punching- and spike-machines. 



PACKERTON. 

This busy town (formerly called Burlington) is named 
in honor of Judge Packer, the President of the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad. It is the forwarding office of the 
immense coal trade of the road, the numerous tracks 
laid here being used for making up the trains for their 
several destinations. The coal is also weighed here, 
for which purpose there are being constructed new and 
improved scales, 122^ feet in length, with a capacity of 
weighing 102 tons 16 cwt. in a single draught. Seven cars 
are usually weighed at a time, and while in rapid motion. 

Here are located the most extensive shops of the 
Company (completed in 1863), whose chief work is 
that of building and repairing coal and freight cars. 
They are well supplied with the most improved modern 
machinery (to which additions are being made con- 
stantly), and are held in high repute. In their several 
departments there are employed about 560 men, re- 
quiring, on an average, $23,800 per month to pay their 
wages. 

The dimensions of the principal buildings are as 
follows : 



72 



MAUCH CHUNK. 



The main shop (a handsome structure of sandstone) i68 by 254 feet. 

The machine-shop . . . . . . . 85 by 41 " 

The smith-shop ....... 278 by 41 " 

The iron-house . . . . . . . 43 by 25 " 

The oii-house . . . . . . . . 29 by 50 " 

The paint-house . . . . . . . 20 by 24 " 

The store-room . . . . . . . 16 by 20 " 

During the year 1872, there were used of materials — 



Cast-iron 
Wrought-iron 
Cast-brass . 
Lumber 
Coal . 



2,953,600 pounds. 

2,817,000 " 

112,104 " 

2,928,500 feet. 

1,560 tons. 



Near by is the extensive park (of which seventy-five 
acres are inclosed) belonging to the Lehigh Valley 
Railroad Company. Through its entire length there 
runs a beautiful stream, in which, as in several ponds at 
the eastern end, there are large quantities of brook- 
trout. It is also stocked with deer, elk, antelopes, etc. 

At a distance of a mile and a half are situated the 
famous fish-ponds belonging to Lafayette Lentz, Esq., 
of Mauch Chunk, who is here largely engaged in the 
breeding of brook-trout, of which he has at times 
over 200,000. The arrangements for their propagation 
and cultivation are very complete, and the establish- 
ment has become an object of much interest to the 
many travelers in this neighborhood. 



MAUCH CHUNK. 

Mauch Chunk (Indian for Bear Mountain, and pro- 
nounced generally as though it were spelled Mauk or 




MAUCH CHUNK AND iMOUNI PISGAH. 



Page 72. 



MAUCn CHUNK. y^ 

Mawk Chunk), the seat of justice of Carbon County, 
was first settled about the year 1815. It was then a 
perfect wilderness, covered with forest-trees and under- 
growth, and so completely hemmed in by high and 
steep mountains that it was as unlikely a spot as could 
be selected for a town, while any outlet by means of a 
wagon-road seemed wellnigh impossible. 

As this wonderful town has been for so many years 
the centre of coal operations for the Lehigh region, it 
may not be inappropriate to condense a few of the 
leading facts concerning the first mining of coal in 
this valley. It was originally discovered by accident 
on the summit of Sharp Mountain (now the site of the 
town of Summit Hill), nine miles northwest of Mauch 
Chunk, in 1 791, by a hunter named Philip Ginter, and 
is referred to in a communication to the State His- 
torical Society, written by Dr. J. C. James, who 
traveled in this region in 1804. Having made known 
his discovery to Col. Jacob Weiss, residing at what is 
now known as Weissport, the latter took a specimen 
of it to Philadelphia and submitted it to the inspection 
of Messrs. John Nicholson, Michael Hillegas, and 
Charles Cist, who were so well satisfied as to its merits 
that, in 1792, they, with some others, formed them- 
selves into what was called the Lehigh Coal Mine 
Company. Without charter or incorporation, they 
took up 8000 or 10,000 acres of unlocated land, in- 
cluding the Sharp Mountain. The company proceeded 
to open the mines, and made an appropriation of ten 
pounds ($26.67) to construct a road to the landing, a 
distance of nine miles. The mines were not worked 
to any extent, owing to the poor encouragement they 
D 7 



74 



MAUCH CHUNK. 



received, until after the commencement of the war of 
i8t2. They afterwards gave leases of their mines to 
different individuals in succession, the last of which 
was owned by Messrs. Cist, Miner, and Robinson, 
who started several arks of coal to Philadelphia, only 
three of which reached the city. They abandoned 
the business, disheartened by the public incredulity, 
in 1 815. 

The same discouraging results followed the attempted 
introduction of this fuel by the enterprising citizens of 
Luzerne County, where it is claimed to have been dis- 
covered by the Indians, and to have been known by 
the whites as early as 1768. People would neither 
purchase it (or, when they did, would afterwards com- 
plain of being imposed upon) nor take it as a gift. 
At the solicitation of Col. Weiss, an attempt was made, 
by permission of the Philadelphia city authorities, to 
burn it under the boilers at the Water- Works ; but it 
was declared that it only served to put the fire out, and 
the remainder was therefore broken up and scattered 
on the sidewalks in place of gravel. 

In the light of its present universal use, it is most 
amusing to recall the persistent discredit with which 
the public looked upon it in the beginning. Hand- 
bills were printed in English and German, stating the 
method of burning it, and including certificates from 
blacksmiths and others who had successfully used it. 
Sometimes journeymen were bribed to try the experi- 
ment fairly, so averse were they to any innovation of 
this kind. Luckily, charcoal became scarce and costly, 
and thus at length some were the more easily induced 
to test the new commodity ; but it was many years 



MAUCH CHUNK. 



75 



before capitalists were led to put much faith in it as a 
profitable investment. 

The expenses of hauling from the mines and of trans- 
portation to the city were very great, so that in the 
early experiments coal cost the shippers about fourteen 
dollars a ton when ready for sale in Philadelphia. 

In July, 1818, the Lehigh Navigation Company, 
and in October of the same year the Lehigh Coal 
Company, were formed, which together were the 
foundation of the present Lehigh Coal and Naviga- 
tion Company. The improvement of the Lehigh was 
commenced in August, 181 8, and, under the skillful 
and energetic management of Messrs. Josiah White, 
Erskine Hazard, and George F. A. Hauto, the almost 
insuperable obstacles in the way of the river's naviga- 
tion and the transportation of coal were at length 
overcome, and the success of the settlement assured. 

The celebrity of the Lehigh coal is very extensive, from 
the fact that it is the hardest known anthracite in the 
world. The bed upon the top of Mauch Chunk Moun- 
tain is fifty-three feet in thickness, exceeding in this 
respect any layer or vein as yet discovered. In 1820, 
385 tons completely stocked the market. Now, the 
shipments of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Com- 
pany alone reach sometimes as much as 18,000 tons 
per week. 

With such constantly augmenting wealth, seeking 
shipment and general management at this point, 
Mauch Chunk, despite the natural difficulties in the 
way, has continued to grow and improve with remark- 
able rapidity. The town itself is built at the conflu- 
ence of a creek with the same name and the Lehigh, 



76 MAUCri CHUNK. 

and can now only enlarge itself by excavating sites 
from the precipitous rocks with which the narrow 
gorge abounds. About 200 feet above there is a level 
of several hundred acres, whereon stands a portion of 
the town called Upper Mauch Chunk. Back of this 
rises the majestic Mount Pisgah. This is the starting- 
point of the famous Switch-Back or Gravity Railway, 
which has been traveled with such rare gratification 
by tens of thousands. Until 1827 the coal was brought 
from the mines to the river in wagons. Mr. Josiah 
White (to whom this region must ever remain largely 
indebted for its development and prosperity) suggested 
and built this railroad. By means of stationary en- 
gines at the different planes, the empty cars are hauled 
up and returned to the mines, and the loaded ones 
brought as far as Summit Hill, whence they proceed by 
gravity to the shutes at Mauch Chunk. The grade 
varies from 50 to 90- feet per mile, except in the de- 
scent from Summit Hill to Panther Creek Valley, where 
it is 220 feet. The same unusual style of locomotion 
is also adopted for passenger cars, and affords a remark- 
able degree of amusement and enjoyment to the many 
visitors daily carried over this route. Recently a tunnel 
has been driven for about a mile through the Nesque- 
honing Mountain from the Panther Creek Valley; and 
it is the purpose of the company to ship its coal here- 
after to Mauch Chunk by this route, retaining the 
Switch-Back road for passenger travel exclusively. 

From the foot of Mount Pisgah a double track has 
been constructed with unusual care and strength to its 
summit, a distance of 2322 feet, with an elevation of 
about 900 feet above the river, at an angle of twenty 



MAUCH CHUNK. 77 

degrees. The scene from the top of the plane is really 
sublime. The view of Mauch Chunk, Upper Mauch 
Chunk, East Mauch Chunk, nestling beneath the 
shadows of the mountains, with the Lehigh River 
winding its way at its base, and alive on either side 
with the steam-cars and canal-boats ; the succession of 
mountain ridges, rising range after range; the distant 
view of the Lehigh Water Gap, with occasional glimpses 
of intervening fields and hamlets, and the much more 
distant view of Schooley's Mountains (sixty-four miles 
by rail) ; this and much more that cannot be described 
combine to make this panorama one of almost match- 
less beauty and grandeur ; while the whole trip, with 
its novel and rapid method of transportation, the evi- 
dences of skillful engineering and mechanism, and the 
constant succession of charming landscapes, is fasci- 
nating and interesting in the extreme. It is thoroughly 
tmique, and no one who has the opportunity of taking 
it should allow it to go by unimproved. 

The railroad was finally put into operation in the 
year 1827 (May). At that time the only other rail- 
roads were those built from Baltimore to Ellicott's 
Mills, for which ground was broken July 4th, 1826, 
and at Quincy (Mass.), the latter being about three 
miles in length, and made in the fall of the same year. 
There had previously been a short wooden railroad (not 
plated with iron) at Leiper's stone quarry, about three- 
quarters of a mile in length; but this was worn out and 
not in use. Seven miles of this road to Summit Hill 
were laid out in the fall of i8i8and finished in 1819; 
and it is believed to have been the first road ever laid 
out by an instrument on the principle of dividing the 

7* 



78 MAUCH CHUNK. 

whole descent into the whole distance, as regularly as 
the ground would permit, and to have no undulation. 

On the east side of the river lies East Mauch Chunk, 
which, from the superior facilities for building, is grow- 
ing more rapidly than either of the other two settle- 
ments. While it is a separate borough from Mauch 
Chunk proper and Upper Mauch Chunk, we have, for 
the sake of convenience, grouped the three under one 
head. 

The town is very much resorted to during the sum- 
mer and autumn months by lovers of pleasure and 
comfort. In every direction the scenery is most pic- 
turesque and entertaining, giving deservedly to the 
place the name of ''The Switzerland of America." 
It is well supplied with gas, while few places enjoy so 
great and constant a supply of pure spring-water. It 
has two extensive iron-foundries and machine-shops 
for the manufacture of stationary engines, pumps, 
boilers, furnace, rolling-mill, mining machinery, etc. 
They employ about 150 men. There are also a steam 
flour- and grist-mill, car-repair-shops, several boat- 
yards, shoe-factories, sash- and blind-factory, etc. 
There is also a mill for the making of wire-rope, using 
annually about 500 tons of iron. The machinery 
for this branch of manufactures was first invented in 
Mauch Chunk. But for the limited room, many other 
establishments would long since have been founded. 
The shipping of the coal from the mines at Summit 
Hill, and the maintenance of the general offices of the 
two railroad companies, and of several collieries and 
other concerns, make it, notwithstanding, a place of 
great business and industry. There are two national 



MAUCH CHUNK. 79 

banks, with an aggregate capital of $550,000, and one 
savings-bank. The population is about 6500. 

A large addition has recently been made to the 
Mansion House, and it is now one of the most extensive 
and complete hotels in the state. It has rooms for 450 
guests, and adining-hall which will seat nearly 500 per- 
sons. It is fitted up with all the modern conveniences 
and comforts, and has already become a favorite re- 
sort for tourists and travellers. Its capacity is likely to 
be fully tested during the present year. Besides this 
house, there are several other large and well-kept 
hotels in the town. 

There are three weekly newspapers published here, 
and churches belonging to the Episcopalians (a very 
beautiful stone building, recently erected at a cost of 
$70,000 upon a prominent and commanding site), Pres- 
byterians, Methodists, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, 
and Evangelical Methodists ; besides which there are 
Roman Catholic, Methodist, and Episcopal churches 
in East Mauch Chunk. In addition to the well-regu- 
lated free schools, there is a flourishing academy under 
the auspices of the Episcopal Church. 

Mauch Chunk is the home of the Hon. Asa Packer, 
the President of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. His 
handsome residence, abounding with beautiful walks 
and terraces and gardens, made from a rugged and 
unpromising mountain-side, is an object that at once 
attracts the admiration of the stranger. 

A handsome stone jail has lately been erected, upon 
a very complete model, at a cost of over $125,000. 

There is a public library of over 11 00 volumes, to 
which additions are being constantly made. 



8o MAUCH CHUNK. 

It is claimed that the first railroad-track ever laid 
down in the United States was in the street fronting 
the foundry of J. H. Salkeld & Co., for testing coal- 
car brakes. 

It is believed that the first furnace in the country at 
which any considerable success was attained in the 
smelting of iron with anthracite coal (bituminous coal 
and coke having been hitherto used) was an old one 
at Mauch Chunk, temporarily fitted up for that pur- 
pose, in the fall and winter of the year 1837, by Messrs. 
Joseph Baughman, Julius Guiteau, and Henry High, of 
Reading. 

An earlier attempt, however, was made in the use 
of anthracite for fuel in iron-manufacture, at Mauch 
Chunk also, in 1823 or 1824, in a furnace built espe- 
cially for this purpose by some members of the Lehigh 
Coal and Navigation Company. It was several years 
after this date that similar experiments were tried at 
Kingston, Mass., and at Vizelle, on the borders of 
France and Switzerland. 

Recently, various journals have had this whole matter 
under discussion, a number of articles and letters from 
parties engaged in this manufacture having been already 
published. As it is a subject of general interest, ex- 
tracts from these documents are printed herewith in 
Appendix B, in which will also be found other impor- 
tant particulars concerning the iron trade. 

At the Turnhole, a short distance above the town, for- 
merly stood a famous bridge with a single span of 200 
feet, the abutmeni on its north side being in this region 
an unexampled piece of substantial masonry. In 1857, 











GLEN ONOKO. 
(Tekkace Falls.) 



See Appe7uiix D. 



Page 8i. 



AIAUCH CHUNK. 8i 

it was abandoned to avoid two very heavy curves (the 
hardest ones on the road), and a new iron double 
track bridge, with a very costly rock-cut at its north 
end, was completed, having two spans of 140 feet each. 

GLEN ONOKO. 

Fo7' full description of this bemi-tifiil glen, with addi- 
tional illustrations ., see Appendix D. 

From Mauch Chunk to White Haven the scenery 
along the river is magnificently wild and picturesque. 
The dark waters of the Lehigh, dyed almost to a black 
by the sap of the hemlock pervading them, every- 
where inclosed by mountains from 300 to 700 feet in 
height, and confined to a channel scarcely 300 feet 
wide, rush noisily and rapidly through a most circuit- 
ous route, perhaps the most irregular and rugged moun- 
tain region in the State. The curves are so constant 
and so abrupt, that there is a continual change of views, 
and some of the bends in the road describe nearly 
complete circles. In looking ahead, at times it seems 
almost impossible for the river to find its outlet. 
Hardly a spot of arable ground is to be seen, the 
hills sinking sheer to the water's edge, interspersed 
with cloves and gorges and tributary streams, and now 
and then with beautiful waterfalls, and spotted at in- 
tervals with tall, gaunt, and leafless trunks of withered 
pines. The geologist and botanist would feel himself 
amply repaid by a leisurely examination of the many 
forms of rocks and plants found here in luxurious 
abundance. Everywhere traces are to be seen of the 
devastating freshet of 1862, in the ruins of locks and 

D* 



82 PENN HA VEN JUNCTION.— DRAKE' S CREEK. 

dams and banks, comprising at one time the upper 
division of the canal of the Lehigh Coal and Naviga- 
tion Company, but which has never been rebuilt north 
of Mauch Chunk. 

BEAR CREEK. 

The name of a wild torrent, upon which a saw-mill is 
located, and in whose waters the fisherman may be seen 
occasionally angling for trout. 

PENN HAVEN JUNCTION. 

At this point the Mahanoy, Beaver Meadow, and 
Hazleton Branches diverge from the main road, which, 
a short distance above, crosses to the east bank of the 
Lehigh. Passengers destined for places on any one of 
these several branches should be very careful to change 
cars at this station. 

For description of the Beaver Meadow, Hazleton, 
AND Mahanoy Divisions, see pp. 125, 132, and 141. 

STONY CREEK. 

This is one of the most beautiful and romantic 
streams in the state, abounding throughout its whole 
length in scenery of the wildest grandeur, making a 
favorite locality for picnics. It is also much resorted 
to in the season by lovers of trout, large numbers of 
which are annually caught in its waters. The various 
saw-mills situated on the stream turn out a considerable 
quantity of lumber for shipment from this station. 

DRAKE'S CREEK. 

A shipping-place for lumber. A saw-mill is situated 
on the wild-brook that here enters the river through a 
deep rift in the hills. Near by, we pass through some 







A VIEW ON STONY CREEK. 



Page 82 



R O CKPOR T.— TA NNER Y. Z^, 

abrupt cuts in the solid rock, so directly under the 
shadow of the mountains that we seem shut in from 
the rest of the world, amid ever-changing landscapes of 
charming scenery. 

ROCKPORT. 

This town is situated on the opposite side of the 
river from the station, in a very picturesque ravine. 
Before the freshet of 1862, it was the shipping-point of 
the Buck Mountain Coal Company, whose extensive 
mines are situated four miles distant. It was at that 
time considerably frequented during the summer season ; 
but since the destruction of the canal, and the conse- 
quent removal of the Company's business, the place has 
assumed rather a desolate appearance. 



MUD RUN AND HICKORY RUN. 

These places are depots for the lumber trade of the 
two streams, which also furnish good sport to the 
fishermen. A few scattered houses contain the whole 
population, who find their employment in the saw-mills 
situated here. 

TANNERY. 

This thriving settlement was first made in 1855, 
about which time an extensive tannery (the second 
largest in the State) was established, the main build- 
ing of which is 700 feet in length. Its capacity is over 



84. WHITE HAVEN. 

50,000 hides a year, and it employs 70 men. Besides 
this establishment of I. M. Holcomb & Co., Shortz, 
Lewis & Co. and Dodge & Co. each have here large 
steam saw-mills, with a combined capacity of nearly 
9,000,000 feet per annmii. Albert Lewis's mill, on the 
opposite side of the river, has a capacity of 3,000,000 
feet. There is no church building here, but services 
are maintained in the school-house and elsewhere by the 
Episcopalians, Methodists, and Presbyterians. Popu- 
lation, 600. 

WHITE HAVEN. 

This town was first settled in 1835, and named after 
Josiah White, the Superintendent of the Lehigh Coal 
and Navigation Company. It was incorporated as a 
borough in 1842. Until the freshet of 1862 entirely 
destroyed the canal, it was the head of slack-water 
navigation, and, as such, was a shipping-point of great 
activity. Soon after the completion of the canal, a 
packet-boat was run from White Haven to Mauch 
Chunk, and another from the latter place to iLaston, 
which mode of traveling continued for several years, 
and, amid such scenery as then abounded along the 
whole route in even wilder grandeur than now exists, 
could not but have been greatly enjoyed. 

Its principal business now is that connected with the 
lumber trade, of which it is the chief depot on the 
Lehigh. Immense quantities of logs and rafts may be 
seen at almost any time floating upon the surface of 
the ponds formed by two large dams across the river. 
On an average, in the spring, there are from twenty- 



WHITE HAVEN. 



8S 



five to thirty millions of feet of timber in the pool 
above the town. 

The following list gives the names and production of 
the various saw-mills here, and of those at Bridgeport, 
about a mile below the town, also of two others in the 
immediate vicinity : 



W. D. & E. F. Brown . . ^ 


40 men. 


5,000,000 feet per 


annum 


C. L. & A. S. Keck . 


30 " 


4,000,000 " ' 




Brown, Stoddard & Co. 


10 " 


2,500,000 " ' 




Werts, Stryker & Co. . 


10 " 


2,500,000 " ' 




A. F. Peters 


18 " 


4,000,000 " • 




Lehigh Grain and Lumber Co. 


10 " 


2,000,000 " ' 




Davis, McMurtrie & Co. 


30 " 


4,000,000 " ' 




Keck, Childs & Co. . 


15 " 


3,000,000 " ' 




Jacob Stouffer 


10 " 


2,000,000 " ' 




Edwin Shortz 


16 " 


3,500,000 " ' 




Brown & Brader . 


20 " 


3,000,000 " ' 





In addition to these establishments, Wallace & 
Breisch have a foundry and machine-shop, employing 
about 40 men in the manufacture of castings and saw- 
mill machinery. There are also three large ice-houses 
(one situated a short distance above the town), with a 
combined capacity of 30,000 tons. 

The manner in which the town has recuperated 
under its several misfortunes is highly creditable to the 
pluck and real ability of its business men. 

There are in the town churches belonging to the 
Methodists, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Episcopalians, 
Presbyterians, and Free Methodists. There is a savings- 
bank, with a capital of $25,000. Population, 1500. 

Passengers in going north dine, and in going south 
take supper, at the hotel immediately adjoining the 
depot, and may always be sure of a good meal. 

8 



S6 WHITE HAVEN. 

The memorable flood of 1862, having obtained its 
first great impetus by the breaking of Dam No. 4, near 
White Haven, may properly be described under this 
heading. A heavy and continuous rain commenced on 
the afternoon of June 3d, 1862, and fell, with more or 
less intensity, until about one o'clock on the morning 
of the 5th. The Lehigh, swollen with its many trib- 
utary streams, and re-enforced by the giving way of 
dam after dam, with their vast accumulation of lumber 
and debris, soon became irresistible ; and from White 
Haven to Easton its banks were the scene of total de- 
vastation. The water rose, it is computed, thirty feet 
above low-water mark, and with immense rapidity, 
— in some places as quickly as nine feet in five minutes. 
Every bridge across the river, as far as the Delaware 
(along whose shores also, for some distance below 
Easton, the effects of the freshet were disastrous), was 
totally carried away, except those at the Lehigh Gap, 
Bethlehem, and Easton. 

Dwelling-houses and other buildings were swept off 
bodily, with all their inmates and contents, until they 
were safely grounded, or wrecked. The despairing 
cries of such as were thus, and in the canal-boats, hur- 
ried on to an inevitable death were most heart-rending. 
Very many were saved from destruction by the most 
wonderful escapes. The storminess and darkness of 
the night added immeasurably to the general alarm 
and gloom. 

It has been estimated that there were at least one 
hundred and fifty lives lost, in addition to more than 
thirty million feet of lumber, one hundred and fifty 
canal-boats, etc. The loss in dollars and cents has 



MO OSlL HEAD. - FAIR VIE W. 



87 



been set down at $2,500,000. The destruction between 
Mauch Chunk and Allentown was so great that it in- 
volved the labor of between two and three thousand 
men and five hundred horses and mules for nearly four 
months before navigation was resumed. The railroads 
commenced running much sooner, although they sus- 
tained immense damage. 

In Philadelphia and elsewhere, prompt and liberal 
subscriptions were made for the relief of the surviving 
sufferers, the funds being judiciously distributed by a 
committee selected from among gentlemen residing 
along the Lehigh. 

MOOSEHEAD. 

This station, formerly called Nescopec, is the loca- 
tion of the Moosehead Ochre Manufacturing Company. 
The raw material is found in the immediate neighbor 
hood, and when prepared is used chiefly in the manu- 
facture of oil-cloths. A short distance beyond White 
Haven, before reaching this station, we cross what is 
known as Cranberry Marsh, where the embankment 
originally made, soon after its completion, sunk sixty- 
five feet, pressing up the clay on either side. It is now 
substantially filled in, and no further difficulty has been 
encountered. 

FAIRVIEW. 

Here we are at the summit of the mountain, and 
cross the track of the Lehigh and Susquehanna Divi- 



S8 NEWPORT. 

sion of the New Jersey Central Railroad. A superb 
view stretches far southward, among mountains cov- 
ered with oak and pine, uninhabited save by a few 
woodmen, and forming a vast wilderness. 



NEWPORT. 

From Fairview to Wilkes-Barre the distance, in a 
straight line, is a little less than five miles ; but we are 
obliged, in overcoming the mountain, to travel sixteen 
miles to reach the city, and at a grade of ninety feet to 
the mile. The view at this station is magnificent 
beyond description. The famous Wyoming (from 
Maughwauwame, the Indian name, signifying large 
plain) Valley, in all its romantic beauty, is here 
spread out in a broad panorama, containing in all 
about 40,000 acres. It lies along the banks of the 
Susquehanna (Indian for broad, shallow river), between 
two parallel ranges of mountains, extending from the 
northeast to the southwest and varying in height from 
500 to 1900 feet. Some geologists have favored the 
theory that at one time this whole region was a vast 
lake, the Kittatinny Mountains, now serrated with 
gaps, forming a dam for the reception of the waters of 
the Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, and Susquehanna. 
While within these ranges all the land is underlaid with 
a greater or less number of coal-veins, outside of them 
none has as yet been discovered. 

The geological structure of Wyoming affords to the 
scientific student a field of interesting investigation. 
The richness of the coal formation would arrest his 




THE FIRST GLIMPSE OF THE WYOMING VALLEY. 

Page 



NEWPORT. 



89 



attention particularly. On the top of the southern 
range of mountains the red shale, lined by the pebbly 
conglomerate (the bed on which the lower stratum of 
anthracite rests), with other accompanying rocks, is com- 
monly observed. On the opposite mountain the same 
rocks appear, though less distinctly marked. Within 
the Valley nearly twenty strata of coal have been dis- 
covered, their thickness varying from four to twenty- 
eight feet. The quality of this mineral for purity is 
highly esteemed, several veins in an especial manner 
being excellent for the fusion of ores and the working 
of iron. During the war of the Revolution, several 
boat-loads were taken down the Susquehanna, it is 
supposed, by Captain Daniel Gore, for the use of the 
armory forges at Carlisle. 

For twenty miles the silvery river may be seen 
meandering among the green meadows and fertile 
fields, entering the mountain-ridge which forms the 
north wall of this lovely valley through the Lacka- 
wannock Gap, a little north of Pittston, and leaving 
it again at the Nanticoke Gap, near Shickshinny. 
These mountains are very irregular in their formation, 
and are in general as wild as when discovered, being 
clothed with pines, dwarf oaks, and laurels, interspersed 
with other woods, deciduous and evergreen. The 
whole area is dotted here and there with towns, vil- 
lages, and collieries, alive with the evidences of indus- 
try. To the south is Nanticoke. In front is Avondale, 
the scene of the terrible disaster in August, 1869, by 
which the lives of one hundred men and boys were 
lost and scores of families were made desolate, casting 
a heavy gloom over the entire country. A little north 



90 



NEWPORT, 



of this is the now largely-extended city of Wilkes- 
Barre. From its changed position, it is hard to be- 
lieve that it is still the point which we are now aiming 
to reach ; and yet the engineering skill by which the 
mountain is crossed is the theme of common admira- 
tion. 

The history of the Valley abounds with narratives of 
adventure, excitement, and contest. In the earliest 
times, before its settlement by the white men, the In- 
dians had fought many bloody battles for its possession. 
Like the Lackawanna, this valley early attracted emi- 
grants from Connecticut, who believed it to be within 
the limits of the charter granted by the British crown 
to that colony. They endeavored to fortify their 
position still further by concluding a purchase of the 
territory from the Six Nations, who also claimed its 
ownership. There arose at once, owing in part to the 
imperfect knowledge of geography and surveying, a 
dispute between them and the people of Pennsylvania, 
who also claimed the territory as belonging to their 
original charter, which culminated in those fierce bat- 
tles known as the Pennamite and Yankee wars, in which 
citizens on both sides, as well in their private capacity 
as through legislative action, were constantly embroiled. 
The dispute, after varying success, each party stoutly 
maintaining its rights, was finally referred to Congress, 
who appointed a committee to decide the question. 
This was done at Trenton, December 30th, 1782, giving 
to Pennsylvania the right of jurisdiction and pre-emp- 
tion to the territory thus doubly claimed. 

But this decree was differently interpreted, Pennsyl- 
vania holding that the Connecticut settlers could only 



NEWPORT. 91 

obtain through her any legal title to the land which 
they claimed, while the Susquehanna Company of Con- 
necticut, granting that jurisdiction was given to Penn- 
sylvania, asserted that this did not affect the title by 
which they held the land. The animosity between the 
two parties was still at times very bitter, resulting in 
great embarrassments to the settlers, and not infre- 
quently in personal and family feuds, the prejudices 
arising from which possessed the minds of subsequent 
generations. It was not until the passage of what was 
known as the Compromising Act of 1799 that this 
unhappy controversy was brought to an end. By this 
law it was provided that in seventeen townships, ac- 
cording to the survey of the Susquehanna Company, 
titles granted by that company, and occupied previous 
to the Trenton decree, should be considered valid on 
the occupant paying a small fee to the State, while the 
Pennsylvania claimant was to receive a certain com- 
pensation in case he released his claim to the Common- 
wealth. Commissioners were appointed under this 
act, who worked diligently for five years, until 1808, 
endeavoring to confirm the titles to the settlers and 
restore harmony between the contestants. The war of 
the Revolution put an end to their relentless strife for 
a time at least, since they saw the necessity of uniting 
against their common enemy. 

The British, in 1778, had determined to make use 
of the Indians in this struggle, and accordingly in- 
duced a body of Iroquois to join a band of Tories 
under Colonel John Butler. Advancing to Wyoming, 
they easily captured Fort Wintermoot. The awe- 
stricken people now gathered from the surrounding 



92 



NEWPORT. 



country to a fort near the present site of Wilkes-Barre, 
called "Forty Fort" (after the forty New Englanders 
who built it), while three hundred and fifty men 
and boys, under Colonel Zebulon Butler, gallantly 
marched, on the 3d of July, to meet the enemy. The 
Americans fought bravely, and even gained ground, 
till Colonel Denison, wishing to take a more favorable 
position in the rear, bade his men fall back. This was 
mistaken for an order to retreat, and, amid uncon- 
trollable confusion, they at last were compelled to 
yield before superior numbers. A general flight en- 
sued, during which many were shot and tomahawked, 
while a few escaped to the fort. The prisoners were 
tortured with unheard-of cruelties, base treachery 
oftentimes luring them on to be most heartlessly mur- 
dered. Some twenty of them are said to have been 
ranged near a stone on the river-bank and held by 
savages, while Queen Esther, an old Seneca half-breed, 
walked round them in a circle singing their death- 
song and clubbing them until they died. (This sone 
is a conglomerate boulder, about eighteen inches high, 
and is still called Queen Esther's Rock.) It is com- 
puted that at least one hundred and twenty of the Con- 
necticut people and from forty to eighty of the enemy 
lost their lives in this bloody engagement, while a 
still larger number are to be reckoned among the 
*' missing." 

The next day the fort was surrendered to the British 
leader on fair terms, with a distinct promise to protect 
its defenseless occupants ; but no sooner were the sav- 
ages admitted than they glutted their thirst for blood 
by putting to the most horrible deaths all they could 



NEWPORT. 



93 



secure. The rest sought safety in flight, but of these 
many died from exposure and fatigue, and a week later 
their dwellings were reduced to ashes. The fair fields 
of Wyoming presented a melancholy spectacle on the 
morning of the 4th ; and from that time to the very end 
of the war there was hardly an hour's security for its 
inhabitants, who seemed to be the object of inextin- 
guishable hatred on the part of their Indian and British 
assailants. In the course of this harassing warfare, there 
were many severe skirmishes, several heroic risings of 
prisoners upon their savage captors, and many hair- 
breadth escapes, some of which are minutely detailed 
in the records of those trying diys. 

It may amuse the reader to see a few lines descrip- 
tive of one of these es :apes, written by a poet of the 
Revolutionary period : 

" And many of the savage Indian crew 
Did to the river's margin him pursue, — 
But he before their frightful vengeance hied, 
And plunged himself beneath the liquid tide, 
And diving on his way, as he did flee, 
Thereby to shun the savage enmity. 
But while the buzzing bullets dashed around, 
In his left shoulder he received a wound, 
Which weakened him so much he thought it best. 
When he approached the shore, awhile to rest. 
When he had rested, he, with all his force, 
Leap 'd from the water and kept on his course ; 
When round the place a leaden shower did light 
Which made the liquid billows foam with white : 
Yet, jiotwithstandlng these obstructions, he 
Sprang up the bank, and got behind a tree. 
When he his breath had gained, and was revived. 
He urged his way, and at the fort arrived ; 
And there united with his friends again, 
And thus escaped the brutal savage train." 



94 



NEWPORT. 



To commemorate the sad events, more particularly 
the battle of July 3d (the harrowing details of which 
are well preserved in a number of histories), a monu- 
ment was erected, in 1832, within the township of 
Wyoming, near the site where it was fought. It is a 
granite obelisk sixty-two and a half feet high, having 
upon marble slabs in front and on two sides appropriate 
inscriptions, recording the events of the massacre, and 
the names of the fallen, under the line of Horace : 

*' Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori." 

It may be interesting to note here that it is thought 
that the famous Moravian nobleman. Count Zinzendorf, 
was the first white man that ever visited the Indian 
town of Wyoming, which he did on a religious mission. 

Among the many points from which extensive views 
are had of the surrounding scenery, may be mentioned 
Bald Mountain, in Newton Township, about nine miles 
from Wilkes-Barre, which is 1750 feet high; Lee's 
Mountain, extending in a southeast direction, includ- 
ing Pulpit Rock, in Hollenback Township, and Honey 
Pot, its northeastern terminus, 865 feet high ; Prospect 
Rock, 750 feet above the river, two miles from Wilkes- 
Barre; and Dial or Campbell's Rock, at the south- 
western point of Capouse Mountain, and near Pittston. 
This rock, lying directly north and south, was the 
noon-mark of the first inhabitants of Wyoming, and 
hence it was called Dial Rock. Its other name is 
probably derived from the poet, Thomas Campbell, 
whose "Gertrude of Wyoming" has of itself so largely 
contributed to render this territory famous. All of these 
points, and a number more, are much resorted to by 



WARRIOR RUN.— SUGAR NOTCH. 



95 



tourists and artists. The views to be obtained from 
them are of such rare beauty that, once seen, they can 
never be forgotten. So varied and extended is the 
prospect that one is truly lost in admiration of the mag- 
nificent panorama, and is instinctively led to adore the 
Almighty Creator. 

WARRIOR RUN. 

This station derives its name from a small creek run- 
ning into the Susquehanna. Through the gap at this 
point it is said that the Gilbert family were taken to 
Canada after their capture by the Indians near 
Lehighton. 

SUGAR NOTCH. 

So called from the collieries formerly owned by 
Parrish and Thomas, which, with uniformly-painted 
breakers and dwellings, and the neat character of the 
latter, present altogether a much better appearance 
than the generality of such improvements. 

These works now belong to the Wilkes-Barre Co 1 
and Iron Company, and comprise two breakers, one 
slope, one shaft, and a tunnel 1500 feet in length, the 
longest in the Wyoming Valley. The combined capa- 
city of the breakers is 1500 tons per day. When the 
new breaker, now in course of erection, is running, 
1000 men and boys will find employment here. There 
is quite a succession of other collieries from this point 
to Wilkes-Barre, the particulars of which will be given 
in the description of that city. 



96 SOUTH WILKES-BARRE.— WILKES-BARRE. 



SOUTH WILKES-BARRE. 

This settlement having been incorporated within the 
city limits of Wilkes-Barre, its statistics will be included 
under that head. 

WILKES-BARRE. 

This is the oldest town in Luzerne County, having 
been laid out by Colonel John Durkee in 1772, at 
which time it embraced two hundred acres. It was in- 
corporated as a borough in 1806. It derives its name 
from John Wilkes and Colonel Barre, distinguished 
advocates for liberty and the rights of the colonies. 
In 1772 there were but five white women in the town, 
and in 1784 the whole number of buildings was twenty- 
six, of which twenty-three were burnt by the Penn- 
amites. The population for many years continued to 
grow steadily, but slowly. Within a few years past, it 
has increased more rapidly, until now, under the recent 
act, passed in 1871, whereby it was incorporated a city, 
with enlarged boundaries, it contains about 23,000 
inhabitants. Its beautiful situation on the banks of the 
Susquehanna, and the excellent society abounding here, 
have always made it an attractive place to visitors. 

Its early history is largely, and indeed mainly, con- 
nected with the wars between the Yankees and Penna- 
mites, and between the colonists and the British and 
Indians, to which reference has already been fully made 
under the head of Newport. It was within the town- 
ship limits that most of the struggles for the possession 



IVILKES-BARRE. 



97 



of the Valley took place. Fort Wyoming is said to 
have stood on the river-bank, near Wyoming Street. 
Very few cities in America have records so full of in- 
terest and importance. 

Its chief business is that connected with the mining 
and shipping of coal, of which there is great abundance 
in the immediate neighborhood. 

The knowledge of the use of coal seems to have been 
communicated by the Indians to the whites, who, how- 
ever, remained a long time incredulous concerning its 
value. In 1768, Charles Stewart surveyed the Manor 
of Sunbury, opposite Wilkes-Barre, and on the original 
draft is noted '* stone-coal" as appearing in what is 
now called Ross Hill. In the year following, Obadiah 
Gore and his brother came from Connecticut with a 
body of settlers, and used anthracite coal in his black- 
smith-shop. In 1766, Mr. Durham's boats were sent 
from below to Wyoming for coal, which was purchased 
from Mr. R. Geer, and mined from the opening re- 
cently the property of Mr. John W. Hollenback, above 
Mill Creek. We have already detailed the results fol- 
lowing its discovery by Philip Gintherj under the head- 
ing of Mauch Chunk. 

The use of anthracite for domestic purposes was 
discovered by the late Jesse Fell^ for many years an 
associate judge of the county courts. We will give his 
own account of it, as recorded in one of the fly-leaves 
of his " Free Mason's Monitor." 

"February nth, of Masonry 5808. Made the ex- 
periment of burning the common stone-coal of the 
Valley, in a grate, in a common fireplace in my house, 
E 9 



gS WILKES-BARRE. 

and find it will answer the purpose of fuel, making a 
clearer and better fire, at less expense, than burning 
wood in the common way. Jesse Fell. 

"February ii, 1808." 

News of this successful experiment soon spread 
through the town and country, and the old tavern of 
Judge Fell (corner of Washington and Northampton 
Streets) was visited constantly by persons anxious to 
witness the curious sight. Similar grates were soon 
constructed, and came into general use throughout the 
Valley. 

From that time on, various efforts were made by dif- 
ferent individuals to inaugurate in this region the coal 
trade, with what success the present wonderful pros- 
perity and growth of this city and neighborhood plainly 
testify. In this connection, it may be interesting to 
republish the following letter, originally printed in The 
Record of the Times : 

*' Sir, — Having seen so much in various papers 
claiming the first mining of anthracite coal in Schuyl- 
kill County, in 1820, I beg leave to present the follow- 
ing facts, which date somewhat prior to the time 
claimed for our Schuylkill County neighbors. 

'^ My father, Abijah Smith, came from Bridgeport, 
Connecticut, in 1806, and settled in the township of 
Plymouth. In 1807 he opened the Red Ash Coal Mine 
in said Plymouth. In 1808 he bought an ark of John 
P. Arndt, of Wilkes-Barre, ninety feet long and six feet 
wide, for thirty-five dollars.- On November 9th of the 
same year (1808) he loaded it with coal twenty-four 



WILKES-BARRE. 



99 



inches deep in the middle, and twenty-two in each end, 
making sixty tons of coal, gross weight, and ran it down 
the Susquehanna River to Columbia. He there had a 
blacksmith make a grate suitable for burning coal, and 
had it put in Gosler's Hotel. After having kindled 
his coal fire (which astonished the people), numbers 
came from miles away to see it, some coming from 
Philadelphia. From that time my father ran coal every 
season until his death, which occurred in 1826. In 
1811-12, Abijah Smith & Co. sent coal to Havre de 
Grace, and there shipped it in schooners for New York 
City, consigned to Messrs. Prince & Waterbury, to sell 
on commission. In 181 2 they sold about one hundred 
and fifty chaldrons (three hundred tons) at twenty-two 
dollars a chaldron (a chaldron contains about two tons). 
According to Messrs. Prince & Waterbury' s account, 
rendered in 181 2, they received $3692.20. Of this 
sum my father received only $762.12, after paying all 
expenses for getting the coal to New York. I presume 
he lost money by the operation. 

'' The above facts will, I think, correct the erroneous 
statement that the first coal was mined in 1820, in 
Schuylkill County. Yours truly, 

''John B. Smith. 

" Plymouth, March 8, 1871." 

According to Professor Rogers, the northern coal 
field extends in length fifty miles, — from Beach's mine, 
one mile below Shickshinny, to a point some distance 
above Carbondale, — and contains one hundred and 
seventy-seven square miles. The veins of coal vary in 
number from two to eight, according to location, and 



100 WILKES-BARRE. 

in thickness from one to twenty-eight feet. Taking 
the most reliable data we can obtain, it is estimated 
that this entire field contains about 2,285,600,000 tons 
of good merchantable coal, to which we may properly 
add 128,000,000 tons, the amount computed to belong 
to that portion of the eastern middle coal field lying 
in Luzerne County. 

Wilkes-Barre being the centre of so much of the im- 
mense coal trade of the State, a few statistics of the 
companies having their headquarters here will prove 
interesting. Their works are situated in or near the 
city. 

The Wilkes- Barre Coal and Iron Company (capital, 
$3,400,000) own thirteen breakers, one of which is 
abandoned for the present^ a second is being enlarged, 
and two others will be at work in the course of a few 
weeks. The combined capacity of thirteen of them is 
estimated to be 1,608,000 tons per annum. The num- 
ber of men and boys employed is 5000. 

The Luzer7ie Coal and Iron Cojnpany are not yet 
fully at work, extensive and valuable improvements to 
the property being in progress. They have six col- 
lieries and shafts, and within two years expect to have 
them all in operation, when their combined annual 
capacity will be about 800,000 tons, and employment 
will be afforded to 2400 men and boys. 

The Susquehanna Coal Company have, within seven 
miles of Wilkes-Barre, three breakers, with a combined 
annual capacity of 660,000 tons, the number of men 
and boys employed being 2300. 

The Delaware and Hudson Canal Company mine 



WILKES-BARRE. loi 

within two miles of the city about 2200 tons per day, 
and employ 1600 men and boys, working four breakers. 

The Hillside Coal afid Iron Co?fipa?ty own four break- 
ers, employing about 900 men and boys, and having a 
combined capacity of 2600 tons per day. 

The Wilkes-Barre and Seneca Lake Colliery, one mile 
above the city, has one breaker, with a capacity of 400 
tons per day, and employs 300 men and boys. 

The Warrior Run Coal Company mine at one breaker 
250 lonsper day, and employ about 200 men and boys. 

Hillman <5r* Son employ about 140 men and boys, 
and mine about 200 Ions per day. 

Besides these coal operations, there are the establish- 
ments of the Vulcan Iron Works, for the manufacture of 
stationary engines, mine-cars, and other colliery work, 
employing about 100 men ; the Dickson Manufacturing 
Company, employing 75 men, and the Wyoming Val- 
ley Manufacturing Company, employing about 35 men, 
both being engaged in the same work as above specified. 

A large wire-rope-mill of the Hazard Manufacturing 
Company has recently gone into operation with a capac- 
ity of 1000 tons per annum. There are also saw- and plan- 
ing-mills, carriage-factories, boat-yards, grist-mills, etc. 

At different intervals between the years 1825 and 
1 85 1, several attempts were made to establish steam- 
boat navigation on the Susquehanna. No less than 
six steamers, some of them of considerable size, were 
constructed at various places, and seemed for awhile 
to bid fair to become valuable additions to the trading 
and traveling facilities ; but they were all compelled to 
be abandoned, the character of the river forbidding 
any hope of permanent success in this direction. 



102 WILKES-BARRE. 

It was also imagined at an early day that large vessels 
could be built on its banks, and floated down, at 
the time of high water, to the seaboard. To test the 
matter, J. P. Arndt & Philip launched in 1803 a sloop of 
twelve tons' burden, named the ''John Franklin," after 
that intrepid adherent of Yankee rights. She reached 
tide-water in safety, and high anticipations were imme- 
diately entertained of future success in this branch of 
business. A stock company was at once formed, town 
lots and timber lands advanced in price, and, amid the 
most sanguine expectations, the ''Luzerne," a ship of 
between fifty and sixty tons, was launched in April, 
181 2. On her downward passage to the ocean she was 
dashed to pieces on the rocks at Conawaga Falls, near 
Middletown. With this catastrophe ended all attempts 
here at ship-building. 

A short distance above the depot, the Lehigh Valley 
Railroad Company own a valuable tract of land four 
hundred feet wide and half a mile long, upon which a sub- 
stantial brick round-house has been built, after the latest 
and best plans, with an iron truss-roof, having accommo- 
dations for thirteen engines. Extensive machine-shops, 
for general repairs mostly, are also in course of erection 
here, and will be fitted up with the most approved ma- 
chinery. / 

The new county prison, erected recently at a cost of 
$200,000, is a very handsome and complete building, 
arranged with separate cells, after the manner of State 
prisons. The outside stone is from the vicinity of 
Campbell's Ledge, the inside stone from Meshoppen. 
The new court-house, erected about fifteen years ago, 
is an imposing edifice in the Romanesque style of archi- 
tecture, costing about $85,000. 



WILKES BARRE. 



T03 



Among other public buildings may be mentioned 
Music Hall (a fine structure, accommodating thirteen 
hundred persons), Landmeser's Hall, and Liberty Hall, 
each holding five hundred. There is also a very neat 
and convenient market-house, owned by a stock com- 
pany. 

Among the many handsome private residences, the 
most costly and impressive are those situated on the 
river-side, which give to the already beautiful banks 
additional variety and attractiveness, and reflect great 
credit upon the taste and liberality of their builders. 

There are the following churches : 3 Methodist, 4 
Presbyterian, 3 Episcopal, 2 Roman Catholic, i Lu- 
theran, I Welsh Presbyterian, i Baptist, i Reformed, i 
Welsh Congregational, i Jewish synagogue. 

A commendable pride has always been felt by the 
citizens of Wilkes- Barre in their public schools, which 
are thought to be equal to any in the interior of the 
State. Several of the school-houses are constructed in 
the most approved manner, and will compare favorably 
with the best elsewhere. Altogether they will seat 
nearly two thousand pupils. 

There is a Historical and Geological Society, with a 
valuable cabinet of curiosities, relics, and specimens. 
There is also a public library, with about one thousand 
volumes. 

The Hollenback Cemetery is an old-established and 
beautiful cemetery. Ground near it has lately been 
purchased for a new cemetery for public use, to take 
the place of the former one, recently sold. 

There are three national banks, with a combined 
capital of $850,000, in addition to which there are 



I04 



PLAINESVILLE.-^PORT BLANCHARD. 



three savings-banks, with an authorized capital com- 
bined of $250,000. A large amount of capital is also 
in the hands of private bankers. 

There are three street railways, running from the 
court-house to Ashley, Kingston, and South Wilkes- 
Barre. 

Below the depot there has lately been erected a neat 
and substantial wire suspension bridge of seven spans, 
658 feet in length. The cost of it was $32,000, sub- 
scribed by different parties to afford a safe crossing 
over the railroads and to aid in settling that part of 
the city. 

By the Lehigh and Susquehanna Division of the 
Central Railroad of New Jersey, and by the Lacka- 
wanna and Bloomsburg Railroad passing through 
Kingston on the opposite side of the river, there is direct 
communication with Scranton on the east and North- 
umberland on the west, where connections are made 
with the great through-lines in various directions. 

PLAINESVILLE. 

Here is located the Enterprise Colliery, having one 
slope 950 feet, average of 20 degrees, one shaft, 145 feet, 
and one tunnel. The breaker has a capacity of 750 tons 
per day, and employment is given to about 250 men 
and boys. 

PORT BLANCHARD. 

Formerly the headquarters of raftsmen, who stopped 
here because of the good eddy. It is named after a 
family long residing here, and is opposite the town of 



PITTS TON. 



105 



Wyoming, near '^ Queen Esther's Rock," of which 
mention has been made under the head of Newport. 
It is the neighborhood of some of the operations of 
the Pennsylvania Coal Company, whose works are 
more fully described under the head of Pittston. 



PITTSTON. 

This busy town is situated at the point where the 
Susquehanna River and the North Branch Canal enter 
the great Wyoming Valley, and is well connected with 
railroads running in all directions. On the west rises 
the beautiful Lackawannock range of mountains. 

It was formed in 1790, but prior to 1838 it contained 
only eight or ten dwellings. At this time Messrs. But- 
ler & Mallery commenced operating in coal, since 
which period the town has rapidly advanced in pros- 
perity. It was incorporated in 1853, and in the 
following year its boundaries were enlarged. 

Within a radius of two and a half miles there is a 
population of 17,000, most of whom are more or less 
directly interested in the coal trade. The most exten- 
sive collieries are owned by the Pennsylvania Coal 
Company, whose total productionfor 1872 was 1,042,916 
tons. The following statistics of their capacity, etc. 
may prove interesting : 

There are in all twelve shafts producing coal, cost- 
ing on an average $50,000 each. The average horse- 
power of each shaft-engine is 40 j the average number 
of men and boys employed, 153. The average length 
of the gangways and breasts is two and a half miles. 



Io6 PITTSTON. 

There are 230 breasts in shafts working, the aver- 
age length of which is 200 feet. The number of 
slopes outside is 4, of slopes inside, 4 ; of men em- 
ployed at the outside ones, 100. The average horse- 
power of engine at each outside slope is 30, at each 
inside slope, 20. The number of breasts working in 
slopes is 62, the average length of which is 200 
feet. 

In addition, there are on the east side of the river 
many other collieries (more or less extensive), belong- 
ing to various parties, with a combined capital of 
something like a million and a quarter of dollars, and 
a capacity of 3500 tons per day. 

Among the numerous mechanical and manufacturing 
establishments located here, may be mentioned steam 
grist-mills, breweries, wagon-factories, stove -works, ex- 
tensive planing-mills, paper-mill, pottery, terra-cotta- 
works, tannery, car-repair-shops, steam bakery, etc., 
with the usual quota of tradesmen and storekeepers; the 
aggregate capital represented in these establishments, 
etc. being computed at $1,500,000. 

There is one national bank, with a capital of 
^500,000, and two savings-banks, with a capital of 
^50,000 each. There are two weekly newspapers. 
There are churches belonging to the German Luther- 
ans, German Reformed, Welsh Baptists, Episcopa- 
lians, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Roman Catholics. 
In addition to six public schools, there are several 
private seminaries. 

West Pittsto?i has a population of 1700. The town 
is beautifully situated on the west side of the Susque- 
hanna, at the head of the valley, and, with its quiet and 



LA CKA WANNA &- BLO OMSB UR G JUNCTION, i o 7 

shady streets and picturesque views, furnishes a very 
attractive place of residence. A private seminary is 
situated here, and enjoys a moderate patronage. There 
are also two large public schools. An extensive foundry 
and machine-shop is located here, for the manufacture 
chiefly of stationary steam-engines and mine and mill- 
machinery. There is also the West Pittston Colliery, 
with a capital of ^500,000, employing 150 men and 
boys, and with a capacity of 400 tons per day. On 
the 27th of April, 1871, a disastrous fire occurred in 
these works, whereby twenty miners lost their lives, 
leaving twelve widows and thirty-six orphans. The 
company is making a second opening, which will 
greatly increase their capacity. Davis and Park have 
also one breaker, with a capacity of 100 tons per day. 
The Methodists have a church-building here. 

LACKAWANNA AND BLOOMSBURG 
JUNCTION. 

The junction of the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Company 
with the Lackawanna and Bloomsburg Railroad for 
Scranton in the north, and Shickshinny, Berwick, 
Bloomsburg, Catawissa, Danville, and Northumberland 
in the south and west. 

A short distance above, the Pleasant Valley Branch 
of the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Company connects the 
main line with a number of valuable collieries. 

COXTON. 

One mile above the L. & B. Junction, and opposite 
Campbell's Ledge, — from which, as already noted, a 
superb view may be had of the Wyoming Valley. 
Many travelers pronounce it the finest of all, it having 



1 o8 RANSOM.— McKUNE' S. 

this advantage, that the two mountain-ranges which 
inclose the valley are both seen at once, and the whole 
valley is given in greater completeness than from any 
other point. Here are located the weigh-scales and 
forwarding offices of the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Com- 
pany, an engine-house, turn-table, side tracks for the 
making up of trains, etc., answering in this upper 
section of the road to Packerton below. 

It is named in honor of Mr. John P. Cox, who at 
the time of his decease was the Superintendent of the 
P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Co. Near by is a beautiful 
water-fall known as the Falling Spring. 

RANSOM. 

A depot for Ransom and Exeter Townships, the latter 
of which is on the opposite side of the river, where 
there is a large flouring-mill. 



FALLS. 

So called from a handsome cascade on Buttermilk 
Creek within sight of the railroad. Depot for Falls 
Township, accommodating also quite a portion of Sus- 
quehanna County. It contains flouring- and saw-mills, 
keg-factories, etc. 

McKUNE'S. 

Depot for Keelersville (on the opposite side of the 
river) and other portions of Wyoming County. 



T.AGRANGE.— TUNKHANNOCK. 109 



LA GRANGE. 

Contains flour- and saw-mills, and is the home of 
the Osterhaus family, for many years residents of this 
section. 

TUNKHANNOCK. 

An Indian name for the smaller of two contiguous 
streams (Bowman's Creek and Tunkhannock), now, 
however, applied only to the one. It is the county town 
of Wyoming, and since the completion of the railroad 
it has become an important business centre. It was 
settled in the early part of the century, and now 
has a population of about 1200. It contains a large 
tannery, saw- and grist-mills, iron-foundry, furniture- 
and sash-factories, planing-mills, etc., also Presby- 
terian, Methodist, and Baptist churches. An Epis- 
copal church is about to be erected. There is also a 
Masonic hall. A national bank is located here, with a 
capital of $100,000, besides which there is a private 
'banking-house. The town (which is very picturesquely 
situated, and altogether very prepossessing in its ap- 
pearance) is supplied with fine water from the moun- 
tain springs. There is in construction from this point a 
narrow-gauge (three feet) railroad to Montrose, twenty- 
seven miles distant (the county town of Susquehanna), 
passing through Springville also, a former residence of 
the Hon. Asa Packer. It is now finished as far as Hun- 
ter's, and the whole road is expected to be open for 
traffic by the end of the present year. 



1 I o VOSB UR G.— ME HO PA NY.—MESHOPPEN. 



VOSBURG. 

The depot for Washington Township, The ride 
hence to Mehoopany reminds one of the famous Ox- 
bow on the Lehigh. From one town to the other", it 
is one mile in a straight line; by rail it is seven miles. 
The scenery along the road on either side of the river 
is most beautiful, abounding in the richest variety. 



MEHOOPANY. 

The town, which is upon the opposite side of the 
river, derives its name from the creek near by. It 
contains Baptist and Methodist churches, plaster-, flour-, 
and saw-mills, and is quite a depot for lumber. A 
large tannery is also in course of erection. On the 
sources of this creek is found the first bituminous coal 
after leaving the Wyoming Valley. Iron ore is also to 
be had here. As early as 1832, quite an excitement 
was created by reported discoveries of deposits of cop- 
per on the creek, from which, however, no advantage 
has been known to follow. 

MESHOPPEN. 

So named from the creek upon which it is situated, 
and which rises in the neighborhood of Montrose. It 
was settled about 1820, and contains a population of 
several hundred. Besides Methodist, Presbyterian, and 
Universalist churches, the town contains a tannery, 



BLACK IVALNUT.—LACEYVILLE. m 

grist-, saw-, and plaster-mills, marble-yards, etc. Its 
chief business, and one becoming quite extensive now, 
is in the quarrying of a valuable limestone, found 
hereabouts in abundance, used for curbs, flagging, 
steps, etc., and very much admired wherever put down. 



BLACK WALNUT. 

Depot for Brintrim Township. There are large quar- 
ries here of the same blue-stone as is found at Meshop- 
pen below, which are being rapidly developed. 



SKINNER' S EDDY. 

Situated upon the two Tuscaroras. Formerly one of 
the finest and most important harbors and landings on 
the river. Frequently, when the descending navigation 
of the Susquehanna was the only way of reaching the 
market, there have been here over-night hundreds of 
rafts and arks. It contains a Methodist church. Still 
another quarry of blue-stone is being worked here to 
advantage. 

LACEYVILLE. 

So called from an old resident named Lacey. Settled 
about 1830. Population, about 300. It contains a 
Baptist church, grist- and saw-mills, and an iron-foun- 
dry, where agricultural implements, etc. are made. 
The stone quarries here are of excellent quality for 
pavements, sills, lintels, platforms, etc. One stone 
was taken out lately that measured sixteen feet square. 



112 WYALUSING. 



WYALUSING. 



This town, which derives its name from the creek 
emptying here into the Susquehanna (although it was 
called by the natives M'chwihilusing, meaning beauti- 
ful hunting-ground, or, as others say, the home of the 
great patiHarch^, has a remarkably interesting history. 
The creek meets the river here in one of those fine in- 
tervales which characterize the scenery of the Susque- 
hanna, and at the junction of the two valleys there is a 
considerable scope of slightly rolling land, spoken of 
by the early travelers as the "Plains of Wyalusing." 
It is believed that the Lenni-Lenape or Delaware In- 
dians for many years occupied the valley as far as 
Tioga, the south door of the Iroquois or confederated 
Five Nations, from which they were expelled by the 
latter after a long series of bloody battles. The great 
war-path leading southward extended as far as Shamokin, 
the present site of Sunbury, which for many years con- 
tinued to be a place of general rendezvous for the war 
and hunting-parties of the Iroquois and their allies. 
Wyalusing, being about a day's journey on this high- 
way from Tioga, afforded a convenient halting-place. 
After the white people began to purchase territory of 
the Iroquois and their confederates, the Susquehanna 
Valley, below Tioga, was reserved as a general asylum 
for the Indians who became dispossessed of their lands. 

Which of the several clans located hereabouts occu- 
pied the village of Wyalusing when it was first visited 
by the Moravian missionaries, cannot be definitely set- 
tled ; but most likely it was the Delawares. Among 



WYALUSING. 113 

them, in the middle of the last century, a remarkable 
desire for the gospel was awakened. In 1762, Pa- 
punhank, a false prophet, who had obtained some 
knowledge of Christianity, preached to them a sort of 
heathen morality. In this, however, they soon lost 
faith, and, desiring some better religious teachers, David 
Zeisberger, the great Moravian apostle to the Indians, 
and a Delaware convert named Anthony, responded to 
the call. He was subsequently appointed resident 
missionary by the Brethren at Bethlehem. His labors 
were unusually successful. He baptized Papunhank, 
and there were good hopes of converting the whole 
clan, but Pontiac's war breaking out at this time, the 
mission was held in abeyance for three years. At the 
conclusion of peace, Zeisberger led the remnants of 
Christian Indians from Philadelphia back to the Sus- 
quehanna, and began to found a Christian town near 
the site of the heathen village, giving to it the name of 
Friedenshiitten, or tents of peace. In 1767 a large and 
convenient church was erected, with a cupola and bell, 
the first that ever sounded over the waters of the North 
Susquehanna. 

For fear of becoming involved in the impending 
strife, and to remove themselves from the demoralizing 
influences of traders and other bad men, the Christian 
Indians, in June, 1772, emigrated to Ohio to the number 
of over two hundred persons. 

To commemorate these missionary labors, and mark 
the site of the village, members of the Moravian His- 
torical Society, at Bethlehem, erected in June, 1871, 
with appropriate and impressive ceremonies and ser- 
vices, a handsome stone monument engraved with suit- 

10* 



114 



FRENCH TO WN. 



able inscriptions, which may be seen just before reach- 
ing the depot from the south. 

The town contains a wagon-factory, flouring- and 
planing-mills, and churches belonging to the Presby- 
terians, Methodists, and Baptists. Population, 500. 
Upon the creek there are several mills and factories, 
giving employment to a considerable number of hands. 



FRENCHTOWN. 

This is the depot for the township of Asylum, so 
called from the settlement here of French refugees 
who fled from Paris at the time of the Revolution at 
the close of the last century. Among them were Vis- 
count de Noailles, Omar Talon, and others who were 
connected with the royal household, and w^ho, upon 
landing in Philadelphia, met with Robert Morris and 
John Nicholson. These gentlemen owned large tracts 
of uncultivated land in Pennsylvania, and with them 
the refugees formed an association known as the Asylum 
and Holland Land Company, and increased their 
estates to a million of acres. Although with a liberal 
expenditure of money and industry the wilderness was 
soon converted into an attractive settlement, yet the 
colony lasted for only a few years, they gladly accept- 
ing the offer of returning to France in peace. They 
left most of their improvements in the possession of 
two or three reQiaining families, whose descendants 
are among the best farmers of this region. 

Louis Philippe (at that time Duke of Orleans), it is 
said, spent a winter here with his faithful adherents. It 



RUMMERFIELD.— WYSA UKING. 



115 



was believed that arrangements were in progress to have 
the king and queen make their escape from France and 
hide themselves in this asylum. Certain it is that a 
house was built far back in the woods, and called the 
Queen's House. 

The town contains flouring- and saw-mills. 



RUMMERFIELD. 

Depot for the inhabitants living upon the creek from 
which the station derives its name. 



STANDING STONE. 

So called by the Indians because of a stone standing 
in the river opposite the village, which no doubt has 
fallen from the hills, although it differs somewhat in 
formation from those that skirt the river. It is erect 
and stationary, measuring forty feet in and out of the 
water. Rumor has it that one corner of it was shot 
off by General Sullivan in his tour through this country. 



WYSAUKING. 

So called from the creek near by, whose Indian name 
s\gm^QS the place of grapes. It was settled in the last 
century, and is an important depot for the adjoining 
villages and townships. It is the residence of Colonel 
Victor E. Piollet, whose estate, consisting of over 



Ti6 TO WANDA. 

twelve hundred acres, is celebrated as one of the model 
farms of the State. 

TOWANDA. 

This thriving town (the capital of Bradford County) 
is beautifully situated on the west bank of the Susque- 
hanna, and surrounded with scenery of a very picturesque 
description. It was settled in 1812, and incorporated 
in 1828. It was laid out by Mr. Means, after whom 
it was at first called Meansville, and subsequently Wil- 
liamston. At length it obtained its present name from 
the creek emptying southeast of the town, the original 
form of the Indian word being Tawandee, or Awandee, 
meaning, at the burial-place. It has been thought by 
some to be the same name as Gowanda, meaning a 
town among the hills by the water-side. The Nanticoks 
are supposed to have buried the bones of their dead 
there. 

The Penns)dvania and New York Canal and Railroad 
Company's road intersects here the Barclay Railroad 
and the Sullivan and Erie Railroad, which are used 
chiefly for the transportation of the bituminous coal 
found in the neighborhood. It has also under its 
control the North Branch Canal. Towanda has thus 
become a point of considerable importance in the ship- 
ment of coal. In 1872 the Towanda Coal Company 
mined 257,766 tons of bituminous coal, the Fall Creek 
Company 100,013 tons, and the Sullivan Anthracite 
Coal Company 54,966 tons. 

Among the mechanical and industrial establishments 
may be mentioned the following : the shops of the To- 



TO WANDA. 



117 



wanda Coal Company, for making and repairing coal 
cars, steam planing-mills, sash- and blind-factories, 
house-furniture manufactory, the Towanda Agricultural 
Works, a steam grist-mill, wagon- and carriage-factories, 
machine-shops for steam-engines, grist- and saw-mill 
irons, castings, etc., boot- and shoe-factories (one of 
which employs nearly 100 hands), the Towanda Iron 
Manufacturing Co.'s rolling-mill (capital, ^55,000) for 
cut spikes and nails, the Towanda Eureka Mower Com- 
pany, with a capital of $100,000, etc. 

In addition to these branches of business, there is a 
very large trade done in country produce (a rich agri- 
cultural section being in the rear), dry-goods, etc. 
Immense quantities of poultry and butter are annually 
shipped to many and distant places. One store, em- 
ploying sixteen clerks, has sold as much as $350,000 
worth of dry-goods and provisions in the course of a 
year. The Schraeder Mining and Manufacturing Com- 
pany, lately organized, with a capital of $300,000, have 
already commenced operations, and expect to have their 
railroad connections made in time to ship 50,000 tons 
of coal during the present year. 

There is one national bank, with a capital of $125,- 
000, and there are also several private banking-houses. 
There are three weekly newspapers, and churches be- 
longing to the Roman Catholics, Presbyterians, Epis- 
copalians, Methodists, Baptists, and African Methodists. 
Besides the public schools, there is the Susquehanna 
Collegiate Institute, designed for both sexes. It is 
under the auspices of the Presbytery of Lackawanna, is 
eligibly situated, and commands a large patronage. 
The number of pupils for the year 1871-72 was 229, 
about evenly divided, of whom about 30 were boarders. 



1 1 8 ULSTER.— MILA N. 

The town has a population of 4000. In addition to 
the court-house, there are halls belonging to the Free 
Masons, Odd - Fellows, and other parties, and also 
Mercur's Hall, capable of seating 500. 

The bridge of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, crossing 
at the upper part of the town, is a fine structure of 
wood and iron, consisting of nine spans, resting upon 
two abutments and eight stone piers, the total length 
being nearly 1500 feet. 

ULSTER. 

Depot for Sheshequin (a name given to the greater 
part of this immediate valley) and Smithfield Town- 
ships. Contains planing-, grist-, and saw-mills; also a 
Methodist church. The original name of the town 
itself was Sheshequin, the name now given to the set- 
tlement on the opposite side of the river. It was for a 
number of years a mission station of the Moravians. 

MILAN. 

A small settlement, containing a saw^-mill and stores, 
with ordinary country trade. 

In the immediate neighborhood, extending north 
and south for several miles, are situated what have for 
years been known as "Queen Esther's Flats," called 
after the famous Indian queen of this name. Her 
history is one of remarkable interest. Some have 
thought her to be the same as Catharine Montour, who 
is said to have been a half-breed daughter of one of the 
French governors of Canada, where she received her 



ATHENS. 119 

education. Others have made her to be a sister of 
Catharine Montour. Her village, said to have con- 
tained about seventy houses of rude form, was located 
about a mile below Athens. Near by stood her 
^'castle," where she held stately court. She married 
Tom Hill, an Indian as forbidding as herself, and, 
after she left Tioga, went to Onondaga to reside. 



ATHENS. 

This interesting town is situated in a beautiful por- 
tion of country, at the confluence of the Susquehanna 
and Chemung (meaning big horn) Rivers. This spot 
was known during the Revolution, and in the early 
part of this century, as Tioga Point. Tioga (meaning 
the 7Jieeting of the watei^s) is still the legal name of the 
river, legally known in New York as the Chemung. 
Prior to the Revolution, and as far back as 1737, when 
Conrad Weiser, a celebrated interpreter and Indian 
agent for the government, made his first visit to the 
Six Nations, it was the site of the Indian town 
Diahoga, the most extensive Indian settlement within 
the jm-isdiction of Pennsylvania, -north of Shamokin, 
it being on the main trail of the Six Nations from the 
Wyoming Valley to the Lakes. It was the " south 
door" of the ''Long House" of the Six Nations, and 
was guarded by the Senecas. After the Six Nations 
conquered the Delawares, they brought them up to 
Diahoga to live, and this, until the year 1758, was the 
principal seat of that tribe. The chief man then among 
them was Tee-dy-us-cung, who styled himself '' King 



120 A THENS. 

of the Delawares," and who, nearly every year, went 
down to Philadelphia with a large retinue of warriors, 
women, and children, and held treaties with the gov- 
ernor, returning to the seat of his jkingdom laden with 
presents. During the French and Indian wars, Tee- 
dyuscung and his nation were disposed to be friendly to 
the English, and in 1758 they removed to Wyoming, 
in order to be under the protection of the government, 
where the governor caused houses to be erected for 
them. After the departure of the Delawares, Diahoga 
was, for some years, occupied or inhabited only as a 
summer residence or hunting-ground by the Six Na- 
tions. 

It was at this place, then becoming known as 
*' Tioga" and "Tioga Point," that Butler, and per- 
haps Brant, with their English and Indians, rendez- 
voused and prepared for their descent on Wyoming, 
and hither they returned after the battle. 

In September, 1778, Colonel Hartley, with a force of 
400 men, ascended the river as far as this place, and 
burned Tioga, with Queen Esther's palace and town. 
In the following year, during his expedition against 
the Indians, General Sullivan made Tioga the base of 
his operations. He arrived here from Wyoming with 
3500 men on the nth of August, and erected a stock- 
ade, extending across the peninsula from river to river, 
called Fort Sullivan. General Clinton pushed across 
the country, from Albany to Otsego Lake, with 1800 
men, and floated down the river, uniting his forces with 
Sullivan August 2 2d. The whole army lay here until 
the 27th, when it went on its march of devastation, 
leaving Tioga a military station, under command of 



ATHENS. 121 

Colonel Shrieve, whence Sullivan derived his supplies, 
and to which he sent his wounded. The expedition 
returned here victorious, and on the 4th of October the 
fort was demolished, and the army w^ent down the river 
to Wyoming. About 1783, white adventurers and 
pioneers first crept up the river as far as Tioga Point. 
The first of whom there is any positive information was 
a man named Patterson, who squatted on the east side 
of the Susquehanna, as did shortly after one Miller and 
one Moore. About 1783, a Dutchman named Budd 
erected a cabin on the Point, and in the next year 
Jacob Snell settled west of the Tioga, where, on the 
5th of July, 1784, was born the first white native, — the 
late Major Abraham Snell. 

In 1784, or early in 1785, Matthias Hollenback 
opened here a trading-house : among his early clerks 
was John Shepard, then a young man, who remained 
here, and afterwards became quite an extensive land- 
holder. In May, 1786, the Connecticut Susquehanna 
Company issued a grant for a township, to be called 
Athens, and in May and June of that year it was sur- 
veyed and laid out by Colonel John Jenkins, Colonel 
John Franklin, and Colonel Elisha Satterlee. Colonel 
Satterlee and his brother-in-law. Major Elisha Mathew- 
son, came up from Wyoming and made improvements 
in 1787 ; the next year they settled here permanently. 
Colonel Franklin built a house here in 1787, and was 
intending to settle here the same year, but was arrested 
for high treason against the State of Pennsylvania, and 
confined in irons in Philadelphia. It was alleged that 
the Connecticut settlers, of whom he was the recog- 
nized leader, were about to erect a new State in North- 

F II 



122 ATHENS. 

ern Pennsylvania, with Franklin as governor. He was 
detained in prison nearly two years, and immediately 
after his release, in 1789, settled in Athens. Frank- 
lin, Satterlee, and Mathewson were the most prominent 
of the early settlers ; they had all served in the war, 
were in Wyoming during the troubles, and had been 
here with General Sullivan. 

To the northwest of the town is Spanish Hill, one 
of the curiosities of this section. It is a bluff, rising 
from the centre of the valley to a height of about 175 
feet, and commanding a charming view for many miles 
around. Remains of ancient fortifications around the 
summit of the hill have been seen by many of the pres- 
ent generation. Some of the early settlers have been 
heard to say that the Indians called it Spanish Hill, 
implying that the Spaniards had been there. Hence 
also the rumors that Spanish coins had been found 
there. The Indians seldom went on the hill, from 
some superstitious dread, it having the name of being 
a particularly fatal place to their nation. 

Athens was incorporated in 1831 as a borough, and 
has a population of about 1000. It contains Baptist, 
Methodist, Universalist, Episcopal, Presbyterian, and 
Roman Catholic churches, and supports two weekly 
newspapers. There is a national bank situated here, 
with a capital of $100,000. The principal business 
establishments are the Steam Agricultural Iron Works 
of Blood & Co., employing about 40 men; Under- 
hill's Tannery, employing about the same number of 
hands, and with a capacity of 25,000 hides per annum; 
and Kellogg' s Bridge Shop, whose work is now extend- 
ing into various distant regions. A large and increas- 



WAVERLY. 123 

ing trade is done in butter, hay, and grain. Besides 
the graded public schools, there is one private academy. 

SAYRE. 

For particulars of this important new station, see 
Appendix E. 

WAVERLY. 

This important and flourishing town is properly the 
northern terminus of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, which 
here makes direct connection with the Erie Railway 
for Elmira, Watkins' Glen, Rochester, Buffalo, Niagara 
Falls, Detroit, and all points west and northwest. It is 
very eligibly situated on a commanding and serviceable 
tract of land, with the Chemung River on the west, the 
Susquehanna on the east, and the Cayuta Creek (with 
large water privileges) running in the centre. It is em- 
braced within a purchase of a thousand acres (at five 
dollars each), made in 1796 by Mr. John Shepard, of 
General Thomas, of Westchester County, New York. 
The tract at this time was a perfect wilderness, and the 
improvements were very gradual until 1848, when the 
Erie Railway reached this point. From that time its 
growth has been rapid and substantial. 

It was incorporated as a borough in 1854. In June, 
1 87 1, a very disastrous fire occurred, causing a loss 
amounting to $100,000; and yet, as in many other 
towns, what seemed a great calamity was converted 
into a public benefit, a much better class of buildings 
taking the places of those destroyed. In addition to 
the railroad connections already named, and a short 



124 WAl'EliLY. 

distance below, with the Ithaca and Athens and South- 
ern Central Railroads, the Pennsylvania and Sodus 
Bay Railroad to Lake Ontario is also now building to 
this point. It is one of the largest butter and grain 
depots on the Erie Railway, whose freight receipts 
here (largely on account of transfers) are in excess of 
those of several other considerable towns on the road 
combined. Among the numerous manufacturing estab- 
lishments may be mentioned a paper-mill (employing 
20 hands), woolen-factory (20 hands), tanneries, grist- 
and planing-mills, sash- and blind-factories, foundry 
(for agricultural implements chiefly), carriage-factory, 
etc. Gas-works are to be put into operation by the ist 
of October, and a large and handsome hotel, to cost 
^60,000, is nearly finished. The opera-house, one of 
the finest edifices of the kind in the State, was opened 
in February, 1871, and destroyed by fire in February, 

1873- 

The public schools are well graded, and furnish an 
excellent education to the pupils attending them. There 
are churches belonging to the Roman Catholics, Bap- 
tists, Episcopalians, and Methodists. Services are also 
maintained by the Universalists. Two weekly papers 
are published here. There are two national banks, 
with a combined capital of ^156,100. 

Population, 5000, including Factoryville and Mill- 
town, which lie immediately contiguous. A short dis- 
tance below the town, the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. 
Company have erected pockets for transhipping coal to 
the Erie Railway, where about 2000 tons can be handled 
per day. 

The improvements now being made on ^'The 



PENN HA VEN. 1 2 5 

Plains" — a valuable addition to the town — are fully 
described under the head of Sayre. This whole neigh- 
borhood is fast becoming a busy railroad and manufac- 
turing centre. 



BEAVER MEADOW DIVISION. 

PENN HAVEN. 

This streetless village was first commenced in 1838, 
when it was selected by the Hazleton Coal Company 
(now merged with the Lehigh Valley Railroad) as 
their shipping-point, from which a large business was 
done, although it was seriously interrupted by the de- 
structive freshet of 1841. From 1838 to 1852, the 
company used the Beaver Meadow Railroad, and after 
the freshet of 1850, they located and built the present 
branch road from Hazle Creek Bridge to the top of 
the mountain at Penn Haven, whence, by means of self- 
acting inclined planes (430 feet high and 1200 feet 
long), the coal is now shipped directly to market. 

BLACK CREEK JUNCTION. 

The point at which the Beaver Meadow and Hazle- 
ton Divisions meet the Mahanoy Division. 

II* 



126 WEATHERLY, 



WEATHERLY. 



This town (originally called Black Creek) derives 
its present name from David Weatherly, a clockmaker 
of Philadelphia, one of the original directors of the 
Beaver Meadow Railroad and Mining Company. 

In the place of the shops formerly owned by the 
Beaver Meadow Railroad Company, and which (to- 
gether with nearly one-half of the superstructure and 
a large portion of the permanent roadway towards 
Penn Haven) were destroyed in the great freshet of 
1849-50, the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company have 
erected here large and substantial works. They afford 
employment directly to about 170 men, and give to the 
town quite a busy aspect. The entire establishment 
forms a hollow square, and was commenced in the 
spring of 1867, and completed in January, 1869, and 
is well supplied with the most approved machinery. 
The following are the dimensions of the principal 
buildings : 

Machine-shop 150 by 112 feet. 

Carpenter-shop . . . . 85 by 42 " 

Moulding-room .... 150 by 52 " 
Smith-shop . . . . . 85 by 42 " 

The round-house has accommodations for sixteen engines. 

• During the year 1872, the manufactures in the foun- 
dry were as follows : 

Iron castings, 2,874,822 lbs.; brass, 209,980 lbs.. 
Babbitt's metal, 1493 ^t>s., and spelter for telegraph 
batteries, ()%t^. 716 tons of pig-iron were consumed, 
besides 1,156,170 lbs. of scrap iron; 37,895 lbs. of 



HAZLE CREEK BRID GE .—BE A VER MEAD OW. 12^ 

brass; 6835 ^^s. of copper; 111,542 lbs. of scrap brass; 
and 9270 lbs. of tin. Some of the finest locomotives on 
the road have been constructed here, in addition to 
which coal cars are made and repaired, and iron-work 
for bridges, brass and iron castings, etc. Nearly all the 
castings used at the Packerton and Delano shops, and on 
the Mahanoy, Beaver Meadow, and Wyoming Divisions, 
are made here. During the year 1872, three new loco- 
motives (the most powerful now employed in coal trans- 
portation) were built, and thirty-eight old ones*repaired. 

There are churches owned by the Presbyterians and 
Methodists, and a public hall used by various societies. 
The population of the town is about 1500. 

Immediately above Weatherly, the road is built for 
a distance of nearly two miles at the remarkable grade 
of 145 feet per mile, and 135 feet per mile for some 
4000 feet farther. 

HAZLE CREEK BRIDGE. 

The junction of the Beaver Meadow and Hazleton 
Divisions and of the Buck Mountain Branch. The 
works of the Buck Mountain Coal Company are situ- 
ated three miles to the north, and consist of two slopes 
and one breaker, with a capacity of 3600 tons per week, 
employing 300 men and boys. 



BEAVER MEADOW. 

This town (pleasantly situated on elevated ground, 
1600 feet above tide-water) was first settled about 1833, 



128 BEAVER MEADOW. 

although at that time the original house, built in 1804, 
was still standing. It derives its name from Beaver 
Creek (running near by), upon which a dam is said to 
have existed, built by the beavers. 

In 1806, the Susquehanna and Lehigh Turnpike, 
running from the Nesquehoning Creek and above to 
the Susquehanna, was completed and opened to the 
public. 

Coal was taken away from Beaver Meadow as early 
as 181 2, being conveyed to Berwick and Bloomsburg, 
where it was used in blacksmithing. Subsequently to 
1826, it was also hauled to the Landing Tavern (just 
above Mauch Chunk), and sent thence by arks to 
Philadelphia, and sold at eight dollars per ton. 

The Beaver Meadow Railroad and Mining Company 
was incorporated in 1830, and built the first road from 
its mines to Parryville (where the coal was tran- 
shipped to the canal-boats) about forty years ago, the 
first extensive opening of the mine being in 1831. 
The first President of the company was Mr. Samuel 
D. Ingham, Secretary of the Treasury under General 
Jackson. The trains in those /r/z/z/Z/V^ days consisted 
of fifteen cars of small tonnage, and were drawn south- 
ward by small engines, carrying on the down trip sev- 
eral mules to aid in the return. The business of the 
road gradually increased from year to year, until from 
being the means of transporting a small quantity of coal 
for the company's own mines at this point, in 1837, 
amounting to 33,617 tons, it became the outlet for 
numerous operations in the neighborhood, carrying 
nearly 750,000 tons of coal in 1859. 

Since the removal to Weatherly of the machine- and 



LE VISTON.—JEANES VILLE. 129 

car- repair-shops, formerly located here, the business of 
the place is almost exclusively that connected with the 
mining of coal in the neighborhood. At these shops 
there were built, under the superintendence of Hopkin 
Thomas and Aaron H. Van Cleve, some of the first 
four-wheeled and six-wheeled locomotives ever con- 
structed in the State. It may be interesting to note in 
this connection that Mr. Thomas was the first to intro- 
duce the burning of anthracite coal in locomotives. 
There are churches belonging to the Presbyterians and 
Methodists. The population is 600. 



. LEVISTON. 

This town derives its name from Hosea J. Levis, one 
of the original directors of the Beaver Meadow Com- 
pany. 

It has two breakers, owned by W. T. Carter & Co., 
with a capacity of 180,000 tons per annum, employing 
325 men and boys ; also one belonging to Ely, Martin 
& Co., which has a capacity of 40,000 tons per annum, 
and gives employment to 70 men and boys. 



JEANESVILLE. 

Coal was first discovered in the Jeanesville tract by 
James D. Gallup, an old pioneer explorer in these parts. 
The property was once held in whole or in part by 
Joseph H. Newbold, and was bought for about $20,000 
by Joseph Jeanes, of Philadelphia, and several others, 



130 JEANESVILLE. 

who, in order to utilize their purchase, let it to William 
Milnes, at a rental of twenty-five cents for every ton 
of coal shipped. Mr. Milnes went to work energetically, 
and soon had the colliery in operation; and in 1855 
the owners were receiving of him for rent about $40,000 
per annum. His lease lasted for twenty years ; and, 
as nearly as can be estimated, not less than one and 
a half million of tons were shipped by Milnes from 
it, since which the property has passed into the hands 
of the Spring Mountain Coal Company, by whom 
probably not less than one million tons of coal have 
been shipped from the same property, and there seems 
to be no cessation or diminution of the supply. A 
town of 1500 inhabitants has grown up on the property, 
all of whom able to work, both men and boys, are em- 
ployed by the company, to the number of from 450 
to 500. There are three breakers, whose united capa- 
city is 250,000 tons per annum. 

The village is supplied with water by water-works 
erected at the expense of the company. A machine- 
shop and foundry is carried on in connection with the 
works, employing about 40 men, and turning out an 
amount of finished work of probably ;^ 100,000 per 
annum, — that is, in work and material. This shop 
consumes say 1000 tons of coal per annum, and about 
400 tons of pig-iron, besides other material, and is in 
the occupancy of S. Cornelison & Co. 

There are Methodist and Congregational churches 
here, besides a spacious public hall. One mile to the 
west, the Beaver Brook Company have two slopes and 
two breakers, with a capacity of about 2500 tons per 
week. 



AUDENRIED.— MILLER' S. i-i 



AUDENRIED. 

The works of the Honey Brook Coal Company are 
located here. They consist of three slopes and three 
breakers (which latter are said to be the largest and 
best-constructed in the Beaver Meadow Region) having 
a capacity of 3000 tons per day, and giving employ- 
ment to about 750 men and boys. 

There are churches belonging to the Welsh Congre- 
gationalists and Baptists, the Presbyterians, and the 
Methodists, as also a large public hall. Population, 
1500. About three-quarters of a mile to the east, at 
Tresckow, the South Spring Mountain Company have 
two slopes and one breaker, with a capacity of 500 tons 
per day, and employing 500 men and boys. 

At Yorktown, immediately adjoining Audenried, the 
Spring Brook Coal Company have two slopes and two 
breakers, with a capacity of 800 tons per day, and em- 
ploying 420 men and boys. 



HAZLETON DIVISION. 

For Penn Haven, Black Creek Junction, Weath- 
ERLY, and Hazle Creek Bridge, see Beaver Meadow 
Division. 

MILLER'S. 

Near by are several saw-mills in operation, and some 
abandoned powder-mills. 



132 L UMBER- YARD.— TUNNEL.— E CKLE Y. 



LUMBER-YARD. 

The point at which this division diverges to Jeddo 
and Eckley. 

TUNNEL. 

So named from the tunnel (1017 feet long) con- 
structed at this point through Council Ridge, which 
divides the Hazleton and Black Creek Coal Basins. 
Formerly the ridge was crossed by a zigzag track over 
its summit. 

ECKLEY. 

The site of this village (formerly called Fillmore) 
was, in 1854, a perfect wilderness. At that time 
Sharpe, Leisenring & Co. commenced explorations 
on the tract to ascertain the thickness and extent 
of the coal-veins. They were soon well satisfied of 
their value, and, as the first step towards making a 
settlement, built a saw-mill, for the conversion of the 
forests into dwellings. Since then the town has 
steadily grown and improved, until now it has a popu- 
lation of about I2CO. The Episcopalians, Presbyte- 
rians, and Roman Catholics each have a neat church 
building. 

The general arrangement of the place is noteworthy. 
No mining town in the State has anything more com- 
plete. The houses are located in four graded sections, 
the cottages of the proprietors being in one, those of 



ECKLEY. 133 

the boss laborers and contractors in another, those of 
the miners in a third, those of the laborers and slate- 
pickers in a fourth. The houses are neat-looking and 
comfortable, and have ample garden-room in their rear. 
A short distance out of town, water-works have been 
erected to supply the village and feed the boilers. A 
saw-mill also is still in operation. The collieries here, 
belonging to Sharpe, Weiss & Co., and operated by 
them upon a lease now about expiring, are known by 
the name of Council Ridge, so called from a moun- 
tain near by, whereon was held the Indian council of 
war which immediately preceded the massacre in the 
Wyoming Valley, an account of which will be found 
on pp. 91-3. The locating of the openings was done 
principally under the direction of Mr. Asa L. Foster, 
one of the most honored pioneers of this region (now 
deceased), whose judgment in such matters was always 
greatly valued. The works consist of three slopes and 
two breakers, the combined capacity of which is about 
150,000 tons per annum. The number of hands em- 
ployed is about 200 men and boys. The population 
of the town is 900. 

Eckley is situated at one of the highest points in 
Northern Pennsylvania, on the dividing line for the 
waters flowing on the east to the Lehigh and on the 
west to the Susquehanna. Some of the views in the 
neighborhood are especially extensive and picturesque. 
To the northwest of the town, on the summit of Buck 
Mountain, the Conyngham and Butler Valleys lie 
stretched out before the eye in landscapes of rich 
variety. Of a clear day the Susquehanna Valley is 
easily seen through the opening made by the Nescopec 

12 



1 34 FO UNDR Y.—JEDD O. 

Notch. To the northeast a beautiful view is had of 
the upper portion of the Lehigh Valley and the Pocono 
Mountain, with the end of Buck and Green Mountains 
in the vicinity of White Haven. 



FOUNDRY. 

There is located here a foundry, whose principal 
work is connected with repairs to the mines in the 
vicinity. 

JED DO. 

This town derives its name from the interest taken at 
the time in Commodore Perry's expedition to Japan. 
In 1850 Coffin & Yost erected a saw-mill and manu- 
factured a large quantity of white pine lumber. 

In the winter of 1858 a charter was obtained for the 
Union Improvement Company, covering the whole of 
the original tract now owned chiefly by A. S. and E. 
Roberts. Wm. Lilly and G. B. Markle leased the 
land in 1859 (A. Pardee & Co. being interested with 
them), and immediately commenced the mining of 
coal, shipping during the first year 50,000 tons. Since 
then, their operations have been largely increased, there 
being now three slopes and three breakers, with a com- 
bined capacity of 1000 tons per day, employing about 
350 men and boys. The veins worked here are the 
Mammoth and the Buck Mountain. A steam saw- 
mill is also located here. Population, 750. 

Jeddo is the passenger station for several important 



EBER VALE. 



135 



towns in the neighborhood, to which the raih-oad is 
extended by branches for the transportation of coal. 
Among these may be mentioned — 

Drifton, where there are three drifts, in which the 
coal is still worked above the water-level. Here there 
is a large and very complete breaker, with a capacity 
of 150,000 tons per annum. This, with several other 
collieries in the neighborhood, is owned by Judge Chas. 
S. Coxe, of Philadelphia. 

Woodside, where there is one breaker, with a capacity 
of 50,000 tons per annum, employing 50 men and boys. 

Highland, where there is, in addition to a steam 
saw-mill, one slope, .with a capacity of 75,000 tons per 
annum, employing about 100 men and boys. 

On the Lehigh Luzerne Branch there are, besides 
Ebervale, — 

Harleigh, where there are two breakers, with a ca- 
pacity of 150,000 tons per annum, employing 150 men 
and boys ; 

Lattimer, where there are two breakers, with a 
capacity of 200,000 tons per annum, employing 250 
men and boys ; and 

Milnesville, where there is one breaker, with a 
capacity of 75,000 tons, employing 100 men and boys. 



EBERVALE. 

In addition to a saw-mill located here, there is a 
colliery with three slopes and two breakers, having a 
capacity of 250,000 tons per annum, and employing 
250 men and boys. 



136 



STOCKTON.— HAZLETON. 



STOCKTON. 



This town is named in honor of Commodore Robert 
F. Stockton, whose liberal aid in the development of 
this region has already been mentioned. The East 
Sugarloaf Coal Mines situated here (owned now by 
Linderman, Skeer & Co.) were opened in 1850, and 
are worked by four slopes. Their united capacity is 
about 350,000 tons per annum, and they employ 500 
hands. The improvements in the village are upon 
an unusually extensive scale, evidenced in the perma- 
nency and- adaptability of-^the machinery and fixtures 
connected with the establishment. 

In December, 1870, through a falling in of an aban- 
doned working, two blocks of houses, with their in- 
mates, were wholly engulfed. Seven lives were lost by 
this catastrophe. Five of the bodies still remain buried 
there, all efforts to recover them proving ineffectual. 

Population, iioo. The only church in the town is 
that which belongs to the Methodists. 



HAZLETON. 

This is one of the handsomest and most enterprising 
towns in the coal region. It is situated on what is 
known as the dividing ridge of the Lehigh and Susque- 
hanna Rivers, the waters in the western part of the town 
running into the Susquehanna, while those in the eastern 
part flow into the Lehigh. Its name is derived from 
Hazle Creek, at the head of which it is located, and 



HAZLETON. 



^37 



which is doubtless so called from a kind of hazel- 
bush which grows abundantly along its banks. It is 
situated eighteen hundred feet above tide-water, and 
about twelve hundred feet above the Susquehanna at 
Berwick, and is one of the highest inhabited portions 
of Northern Pennsylvania. It was settled in 1836, 
and incorporated in 1857. Its growth has been steady 
and rapid, the number of inhabitants being at present 
about 5000, in addition to which there is a large popula- 
tion in the numerous other towns lying in close prox- 
imity. The principal street is one hundred feet in 
width and a mile in length, lined on either side with 
good and substantial buildings. The handsome resi- 
dence and grounds of Ario Pardee (to whom this 
whole region is so largely indebted for its present state 
of wonderful prosperity) occupy a prominent position. 

Hazleton has become quite a place of summer resort, 
the healthfulness of the locality and the delightful 
coolness of the atmosphere attracting many of the 
inhabitants of our seaboard cities. The town is well 
supplied, from works owned by the railroad company, 
with pure spring-water from an adjoining hill. A gas 
company has recently been organized, and has com- 
menced operations. 

There are church buildings owned by the Roman 
Catholics, the Presbyterians, the Episcopalians, the 
Methodists, the Albright Methodists, the Lutherans, the 
Dutch Reformed, and the German Reformed. There 
are published here one daily and two weekly news- 
papers. The town-hall is a large and imposing build- 
ing, with fine store-rooms underneath and lodge-rooms 
above. Besides the extensive shops belonging to the 

12* 



138 HAZLETON. 

railroad company, there are planing-mills, chair-factory, 
foundry and machine-shop, carriage-factory, etc. There 
are two savings-banks, having discounting privileges, 
with a combined capital of $250,000. 

The following are the dimensions of the railroad 
company's shops: 

■ * 

Machine-shop . . . 450 by 50 feet. 

Foundry .... 104 by 56 " 

Car-wheel-shop. . . 80 by 36 " with a wing 36 ft. square. 

Boiler-shop . . . 102 by 52 " 

Forge or steam-hammer-shop 50 by 50 " 

Blacksmith-shop . . 80 by 40 " with awing 75 by 35 feet. 

Car-shop . . . . 95 by 50 " with a wing 95 by 63 feet. 

The round-house is a semicircle, having twenty-one 
stables and a fifty-two feet turn-table. Besides the gen- 
eral work of manufacture and repair for the Company, 
these shops are largely engaged in making stationary 
engines, pumps, breakers, etc. for the surrounding 
collieries. All the locomotives running on this division 
of the road were also made here, and bear ample testi- 
mony to the excellent workmanship employed in their 
construction. 
At these works there were used during the year 1872, of — 

Pig-iron ....... 2001 tons. 

Bar-iron ...... 344,722 pounds. 

Boiler-iron ...... 191,009 " 

Russia sheet-iron S276 " 

Pig-lead ...... 6952 " 

Pig-tin 3123 

Ingot-copper . . . . . . 17,675 " 

Nails and spikes ..... 16,900 " 

Rivets ....... 21,170 " 

Screen-iron 163,896 " 

Tank-iron 25,707 " 

Steel-plate 21,295 " 



HAZLETON. 139 

Sheet-brass . • 910 pounds. 

Coa'i ....... 2,690 tons. 

Lard-oil 1,410 gallons. 

Machine-oil ...... 3,330 " 

The total value of material used was 1235,441.68, 
and the amount of wages paid was ^172,916. In addi- 
tion to that done for the Company, work was also done 
here for other parties to the amount of ^122,000. The 
number of men employed was 272. During the year 
seven locomotives were built and twenty-six repaired. 

In and immediately around Hazleton there are seven 
collieries, operated by A. Pardee & Co., numbering 
eight slopes and seven breakers, the united capacity of 
which is 16,000 tons per week. In them there are 
employed 1200 men and boys. Near the Company's 
shops is said to be the deepest mine in the United 
States. It is 970 feet perpendicular, and 600 yards on 
the slope. 

Three miles and a half to the west of the borough is 
the Mount Pleasant Colliery, consisting of one slope 
and one breaker, the capacity of which is 1600 tons 
per week, employing 100 men and boys. 

A mile farther is the Humboldt Colliery, consisting 
of one slope and one breaker, with a capacity of 2000 
tons per week, and employing 120 men and boys. 

The first shipment of coal from this neighborhood 
was in 1838, by the Hazleton and Laurel Hill Com- 
panies, Now the weekly shipment by the Hazleton 
Division proper amounts to 60,000 tons per week. The 
veins mostly worked are the Big (white ash) and the 
Buck Mountain (red ash), with other smaller veins 
intervening. The Big Vein is about thirty-three feet 



1 40 CRANBERR Y.—CONYNGHAM.— TOMHICKEN. 

between the rocks, and the Buck Mountain about fifteen 
feet. 

By the recent construction of the Danville, Hazleton, 
and WiJkes-Barre Railroad, direct communication is had 
with Danville, Sunbury, and intermediate points. 



CRANBERRY. 

The location of one of the collieries operated by A. 
Pardee & Co., included in the statement of their capa- 
city, etc., under the head of Hazleton. 



CONYNGH AM. 

Situated at the top of the mountain overlooking the 
Conyngham Valley, which is one of the most beautiful 
valleys in the State. 

TOMHICKEN. 

The junction of the Hazleton Division with the 
Danville, Hazleton, and Wilkes-Barre Railroad. 



HARIT S.— SWITCH BACK.' 141 

MAHANOY DIVISION. 

HARTZ'S. 

A former stopping-place (named after Col. Jacob 
Hartz, an old and prominent settler of this region) on 
the turnpike from Wilkes-Barre to Mauch Chunk. It 
contains a foundry for mine-pipes, a grist-mill, and 
saw-mill. Considerable prop-timber is obtained here. 

GERHARD'S. 

There are located here a saw-mill and grist-mills. It 
is also a shipping-place for lumber. 

. STEWART'S. 

A stopping-place on the wagon-road from Tamaqua 
to Beaver Meadow. Depot for timber and farmers' 
supplies. 

SWITCH BACK. 

So called from a plane which formerly existed here 
a short distance up the gorge, connecting with the 
Catawissa Railroad, extending by a switch-back from 
the foot of the plane to what is now Quakake Junc- 
tion. At this point the railroad crosses the Little 
Schuylkill with an embankment, handsomely arched, 



142 QUAKAKE JUNCTION.—DELANO. 

eighty-five feet high, the masonry of which is especially 
fine. Several powder-mills are situated in the imme- 
diate neighborhood. 



QUAKAKE JUNCTION. 

At this point the Mahanoy Division of the Lehigh 
Valley Railroad connects with the Catawissa and Wil- 
liamsport Division of the Philadelphia and Reading 
Railroad, and passengers going north change cars for 
Catawissa, Rupert, Bloomsburg, Danville, Muncy, Wil- 
liamsport, etc. The ascent over the mountain (a spur 
of the Broad Mountain) is on a grade of seventy-six 
feet, and affords to the lover of beautiful scenery a 
landscape rarely equaled in Pennsylvania. It is only 
less extensive than that furnished near Wilkes-Barre, of 
the Wyoming Valley, with which, in its several charm- 
ing outlines, it is often compared. The rapid transit 
of the cars gives us too short a glimpse of a panorama 
which will well repay a more careful study, whereby its 
many points of interest can be more leisurely enjoyed. 



DELANO. 

Here are located extensive and substantial shops be- 
longing to the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, and 
residences of firemen, brakesmen, and others employed 
in their service. The town was settled in 1864, and 
was named after Warren Delano, the President of the 
New Boston Coal Company, whose mines are in the 
neighborhood. 



DELANO. 



143 



The dimensions of the several shops are as follows : 



Machine-shop 

Smith-shop 

Boiler-shop 

Carpenter-shop 

Tin-shop 

Tool-shop 



100 by 140 feet. 
54 by 80 " 
35 by 70 " 
25 by 130 " 
24 by 30 " 
20 by 20 " 



The number of men employed in these various de- 
partments is 130. During the year 1872, there were 
used of material as follows : 



Cast-iron 
Wrought-iron 
Sheet-iron 
Spring steel . 
Copper . 
Babbitt-metal 



280,000 


pounds. 


80,000 




75,000 




20,000 




3,000 




1,000 





The chief item of work done here is the building, 
rebuilding, and repairing of locomotives. During the 
past year two engines were rebuilt, and sixty-seven old 
ones repaired. They are fully equal to any employed 
on the road. Total cost of material used, ^30,000; 
total cost of labor, ^65,000. Total mileage, 1,568,864. 
Number of gallons of oil used, 10,000; of pounds of 
waste, 25,000. 

The engine-house is 64 by 250 feet, and has accom- 
modations for sixteen engines. 

About a mile to the west of the town is situated the 
Pine Creek Colliery, employing 40 men and boys, and 
having a capacity of 150 tons per day. 



144 



MAHANOY CITY. 



MAHANOY CITY. 



The records of the spot upon which the town is 
situated can be traced as far back as January 31st, 1789, 
at which time Christian Barrenstein made an applica- 
tion for fifty acres of land, upon which a warrant was 
issued from John Lukens, Surveyor- General, the terri- 
tory being at that time comprised within Berks County. 
Then followed the Kunkle survey in 1792, that of the 
Delano Land Company in 1793, and that of the Kear 
and Patterson estate in 1794. Others followed imme- 
diately after, so that but little land was left in the hands 
of the Commonwealth in this vicinity at the beginning 
of the present century. 

The first settlement was made between the years 
1800 and 1810, and consisted in part of a saw-mill and 
dam, of which traces were visible east of Fifth Street in 
the early days of the town. In 1810, Peter Knalb 
erected a tavern near the site of the present hay-scales, 
which appears to be the first house of which anything 
positive is remembered. Between 1810 and 1820 sev- 
eral dwellings were erected on the McNeal tract, and 
afterwards on the North Mahanoy. For a number of 
years the principal business was that of lumbering and 
shingle-making, which was carried on to a considerable 
extent. In 1858 the town was first laid out (its Indian 
name being derived from the creek running through it), 
there being at that time but one house within its pro- 
posed limits. It was incorporated in 1864. Its growth 
until 1861 was steady but slow; but from 1862 to 1866 
the progress was remarkably rapid, buildings arising as 



MAHANOY CITY. 



145 



if by magic. Since then the town has continued to 
grow and improve, and the spirit of enterprise bids 
fair to outlast many older settlements. Its present 
population is about 6000, in addition to which there 
are several thousands of inhabitants living in the 
numerous smaller towns in the neighborhood. The 
discovery and development of the coal-fields imme- 
diately surrounding the town have, of course, been the 
chief means of accelerating its prosperity. At the 
present time there are within its limits, and near by, 
twenty collieries, each having on an average a capacity 
of 250 tons per day, and employing 200 men and boys. 
The capital invested in them will amount to at least 
$1,500,000. 

Among the manufacturing establishments in the 
borough are an iron-foundry, a pottery, a screen fac- 
tory, a boiler-factory, and a steam-flouring mill. There 
is a national bank, with a capital of ^100,000, and a 
savings-bank, with an authorized capital of ^150,000. 
Two weekly newspapers are published here. The town 
is well supplied ^ ith v ater, and steps have lately been 
taken to improve the streets and light them. The main 
street is a fine avenue, eighty feet wide and a mile in 
length. There are church buildings belonging to the 
following denominations : Presbyterian, Reformed, 
Methodist Episcopal, Primitive Methodist, Evangelical 
Methodist, Protestant Episcopal, Welsh Congrega- 
tional, Roman Catholic (Irish and German), Baptist 
(Welsh and English), and Lutheran (German and 
English). 

G 13 



146 MYERSVILLE,— SHENANDOAH, 



MYERSVILLE. 

Junction of the branch road from Mahanoy City. 
The Hoffman Colliery is situated here, having one 
breaker, with a capacity of 200 tons per day. 



YATESVILLE. 

Contains the McNeal Coal Company's Collieries, 
comprising two breakers with a combined capacity 
of 1200 tons per day, employing 450 men and boys, 
with a capital of ^500,000. The Knickerbocker An- 
thracite Coal Company also has a breaker here, with a 
capacity of 500 tons per day, giving employment to 
-220 men and boys. Population, including Barry's, 
1000. 

SHENANDOAH. 

This flourishing borough is a fair example of the 
rapidity with which many of the towns in this region 
have grown. In 1863, the spot which it at present 
occupies was a comparative wilderness, the only sign 
of civilization being a solitary old house, with an acre 
or two of cleared ground. It was incorporated in 
1866, and its population now is nearly 5000. It de- 
rives its name from the Shenandoah Creek, which 
passes through it. The trade of the Catawissa Valley, 
a fine agricultural district, mainly centres here, and is 
of growing importance. The main support of the 



SHE N AND OAH. 147 

place, however, is the coal trade, and in that interest 
its prospects are thought to be second to no other town 
in Schuylkill County, some of the finest veins ever 
worked being found here. The Shenandoah coal-basin 
is about four miles in length by one mile in width, and 
the number of active operations within its limits is 
about twelve, several of which are of very recent date. 
The following is a summary of the number of tons 
shipped during the year 1872, showing a large increase 
over that of former years. 

Colorado Colliery ...... 127,250 

Plank Ridge Colliery ...... 133,103 

Shenandoah Colliery 44.5 n 

Keely Run Colliery 106,919 

Shenandoah City Colliery , . . . . 73,718 

William Penn Colliery ..... 89,300 

Indian Ridge Colliery ...... 81,915 

Turkey Run Colliery 77.469 

West Shenandoah Colliery ..... 8,726 

Kohinoor Colliery ...... 104,743 

Girardville (2d col.) 103,760 

Lehigh Colliery ....... S5.5oo 

Total 1,006,914 

Besides the usual number of stores and hotels, there 
are two banks, with a combined capital of ^150,000, 
a weekly newspaper, a foundry, and a machine-shop. 
Of churches, there are the Roman Catholic (Irish 
and German), Methodist, Presbyterian, German Lu- 
theran, Welsh Congregational, Welsh Presbyterian, 
and Welsh Baptist. The Episcopalians and the 
Primitive and German (Albright) Methodists also 
hold service on stated occasions, but are as yet 
without buildings of their own. A handsome and 



1 48 /^A VEN R UN,~ CENTRA LI A. 

commodious public school-house is under contract, and 
will cost, it is thought, from $15,000 to $20,000. Per- 
mission has been obtained from the Legislature to bor- 
row $25,000 for improvement of the streets, etc., and 
the authorities expect shortly to put the work through. 



RAVEN RUN. 

Here are situated the Girard Mammoth Colliery, 
with a capacity of 600 tons per day, and employing 
210 men and boys, and the Cuyler Colliery, employing 
160 men and boys, with a capacity of 400 tons per day. 
Both were started in October, 1866. 

From this point a branch road runs to Montana (a 
thriving town on the turnpike to Pottsville), where the 
Reno Colliery is located, which has a capacity of 700 
tons per day. 

Raven Run is also the outlet chosen for the New 
York and Middle Coal Field Railroad Company, whose 
road, partially built in the most costly and approved 
manner about twenty years ago, was subsequently aban- 
doned. A fine view may be obtained here of Mount 
Carmel and the vicinity. Population, about 600. 



CENTRALIA. 

This town was settled about 1853, and incorporated 
in 1866, and contains a population of over 2000. 
The Presbyterians, the Roman Catholics, the Meth- 
odists, and the Episcopalians, each have a church 



MOUNT CARMEL. 149 

building of their own, and a Welsh service is also held. 
The collieries of Messrs. Robert Gorrelle & Co., Nor- 
ton, Audenried & Co., and Ryan & Co., situated here, 
have a combined capacity of about 400,000 tons per 
annum. 



MOUNT CARMEL. 

This is the terminus of the Mahanoy Branch of the 
Lehigh Valley Railroad, which connects at this point 
with the Shamokin Branch of the Northern Central 
Railway. 

It was settled in 1853, incorporated in 1862, and 
contains about 2000 inhabitants. There are in the 
neighborhood six collieries, whose united capacity is 
about 600,000 tons per annum. There are also located 
here a machine-shop, foundry, and shovel-factory. 

There are church buildings owned by the Lutherans, 
Methodists, and Roman Catholics. Services are also 
held by the Episcopalians, Baptists, and United Breth- 
ren of Christ. 



13* 



APPENDIX A. 



COAL. 



A FEW Statistics of the anthracite coal trade are sub- 
joined, as giving the reader a general idea of the 
enormous proportions to which it has grown. The)^ 
are copied from the Miners' 'yournal Register iox 1873. 

The following gives the number of collieries, etc. in 
the different regions : 





No. of 


No. of 


No. of 


No. of 




Collieries. 


Shafts. 


Slopes. 


Drifts, etc 


Schuylkill County . . 


. 164 


13 


141 


102 


Northumberland County 


33 




18 


52 


Columbia County . . 


8 




7 


4 


Dauphin County . . 


4 




4 




Luzerne East . . . 


. 80 


46 


21 


68 


Luzerne West . . . 


. 102 


31 


43 


42 


Lehigh Region . . . 


. 46 


I 


59 


12 



437 



91 



293 



280 



The following is the quantity mined in 1872 : 



Sent to Market. Home Consumption. Total 





Official. 


Estimated. 


Production. 


Schuylkill and Columbia 








Counties .... 


4.455.813 


900,000 


S.355.813 


Northumberland County 


1,221,327 


170,000 


1,391,327 


Lehigh Region . . 


3,610,374 


500,000 


4,110,374 


Wyoming Region . . 


9,191,171 


1,500,000 


10,691,171 


Lyken's Valley . . . 


450.328 
18,929,013 


40,000 


490,328 




3,110,000 


22,039,013 








(151) 



152 



APPENDIX. 



The quantity of coal mined in Great Britain during 
1872 was 120,000,000 tons, of which there were ex- 
ported 13,211,961 tons. 

The casualties in 1872 were as follows: 





Killed. 


Injured 


Schuylkill County 


65 


216 


Northumberland County 


10 


26 


Columbia County 


7 


10 


Dauphin County 


8 


13 


Lehigh Region . 


25 


38 


Wyoming Region 


107 


308 




222 


611 



APPENDIX B. 



IRON. 



It is not positively known when or where iron was 
first made in the United States, but the attention of the 
first settlers of the British Colonies was very early 
directed (no doubt by the previous knowledge of the 
Indians) to the iron ore with which the country 
abounds, and in various sections furnaces wer& soon 
erected for its conversion into metal. Perhaps the 
first production from native ore in Pennsylvania was at 
the Coventry Forge, in Chester County, in 1720. 

It was not until after the discovery of the use of 
anthracite coal in furnaces, that the foundations of the 
immense establishments were laid which have given to 
this trade its present importance. Prior to this time 
the ore was converted into metal by the use of bitu- 



IRON. 



153 



minous coal, charcoal, and coke. This process was far 
less economical than was desirable, and therefore when 
the value of anthracite for ordinary purposes of fuel 
was fairly tested, its adaptation to smelting uses was 
tried, and, after a series of reverses and a period of 
general incredulity, gladly hailed as a great saving in 
both metal and fuel. This success added largely not 
only to the prosperity of the iron trade, but of the 
coal trade also. 

Up to about 1833 the cold blast was exclusively era- 
ployed in the furnaces. At that time the Rev. Frederic 
W. Geisenhainer, of Schuylkill County, after various 
experiments in the treatment of anthracite with the hot 
blast, obtained a patent for the same, and in 1835 he 
made iron by this process in a small stack near Potts- 
ville. 

The Lehigh Valley has now become the largest pro- 
ducing region in the country, having at the present 
time more than forty furnaces in operation, with an 
annual capacity of over 400,000 tons. Quite a con- 
trast to this is afforded in the list of articles transported 
by the Lehigh Canal in 1836, when there were carried 
of iron only 1197 tons, while of whisky there were 
641 tons ! The quantity of pig-metal manufactured in 
the United States during 1872 is estimated as follows: 

Anthracite 1,137,010 tons. 

Raw coal and coke 742,500 " 

Charcoal 498.50° " 

2,378,010 

In 1810 it is computed that there were 30,000 tons 
produced. 



G 



* 



154 



APPENDIX. 



The product of the English furnaces during the year 
1872 is estimated to have been 7,000,000 tons. 

Touching the question of who first used anthracite 
coal in the manufacture of iron, the following docu- 
ments are submitted. Reference has already been 
made to this subject under the head of Mauch Chunk, 
where it is stated upon good authority that an attempt 
in this direction prior to the dates below mentioned 
was made at Mauch Chunk by members of the Lehigh 
Coal and Navigation Company. 

The first letter, originally published in the American 
Manufacturer, is as follows : 

" Catasauqua, Pa., Feb. 23d, 1872. 
^'B. F. H. Lynn, Esq.: 

^ ''Dear Sir, — The question of who was the first per- 
son to use anthracite coal for smelting iron, is difficult 
to answer ; but I will give you a few facts, from which 
you can draw your own conclusions. 

*'In the year 1825, while manager of the Yniscedwin 
Works, South Wales (where I was from 181 7 to 1839), 
I built a blast furnace of 9 feet bosh and 30 feet 
high to make experiments with anthracite coal, which 
abounded in that neighboroood, while we brought coke 
14 miles by canal to smelt ore with. This furnace was 
blown in with coke in 1826, and the anthracite intro- 
duced first one-sixteenth part of the fuel and gradually 
advanced to one-half, when we had to stop and blow 
out. It was a failure. 

''In 1832, the same furnace was altered to 45 feet high 
and II feet bosh, and the same experiment tried, with 
the same result. 



IRON. ,55 

"In 1836, hot-blast ovens were built to this furnace, 
according to Mr. Neilson's patent for hot blast, of 
Glasgow, Scotland, and on the 5th of February, 1837, 
anthracite iron was made, and quite successfully, and 
in that I claim to have been the first person to obtain 
successful results, — at least as far as I know or ever 
heard of. 

''By an agreement in writing, made with the Lehigh 
Coal & Navigation Company (which agreement I still 
have in my possession), I came to this country in the 
spring of 1839, at which time I found a small furnace 
at South Easton, worked by a Mr. Van Buren, who was 
endeavoring to make iron with anthracite coal. It was 
run some ten days or two weeks, when it chilled, and 
proved a failure, both financially and as a furnace. 
There was another at Mauch Chunk, owned by three 
or four men, — a Mr. Bauhm, a Mr. Gitto, and a Mr. 
Lathrop (the latter I think still being at Trenton, 
N. J.). This furnace was chilled up in about one week 
after bio wing-in. 

"At the same time there was another building at 
Pottsville, by Mr. Lyman. I received a communica- 
tion from this gentleman by the hand of the President 
of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, for whom I was 
building the first furnace at this place. This letter 
urged me to come to Pottsville. I visited him in Au- 
gust, 1839, and furnished him with plans of in-wall, 
bosh, hearth, etc., and continued to visit him about 
once a month until the furnace was completed, which 
was in January, 1840. Then I was so engaged here that 
I could not remain with him long enough to put it in 
blast. He accordingly obtained the services of Mr. B. 



156 APPENDIX. 

Perry, who blew it in, as founder. Tliey made iron 
for some weeks, — I am not able to say how many, — but, 
the machinery not being strong, they broke down, and 
I believe the furnace chilled up, though I will not be 
positive on this point, as it might have been blown out. 

" On the 4th of July, 1840, I made the first iron on 
this plan in our first furnace here, and kept it running 
month after month and year after year. In 1841, I 
built the second, in 1846, the third, in 1849, ^^"^^ fourth 
and fifth, and in i860, the sixth, and there are now 
in this Valley 46 anthracite furnaces, producing over 
400,000 tons of pig-iron annually. 

^' I am sorry I have to write this so long, but could not 
well make it intelligible if shorter. When next I see 
you I will take pleasure in telling you of scores of ex- 
periments made with anthracite coal. I have been in 
the blast-furnace business sixty years the 12th of April 
next, and forty-five to fifty of these years I have been 
experimenting with anthracite. I care very little about 
the glory, — who was, or who is the successful candidate, 
— as men's praises are like shadows. 

"You may use this, as I fear no contradiction. I have 
written nothing but plain facts, but not one-tenth of 
what might be said did necessity call for it. 

"I should be glad to hear from you. 
"Yours very truly, 

_ "David Thomas. 

"P.S. — Mr. Richards did not buy the Mauch Chunk 
Furnace until 1842 or 1843, ^^^ ^^^ used charcoal in it." 

We give below a letter from Mr. James Pott, of Har- 
risburg, to the editor of the Coal and Iron Record : 



IRON, 



^57 



*'In No. I of vol. i. of your journal, you give a 
sketch of David Thomas, in the course of which you 
say, ' He was the first man to demonstrate the prac- 
ticability of using anthracite in smelting iron ores. 
.... And of all this magnificent industry, the fur- 
nace started by Mr. Thomas, at Pottsville, less than 
thirty years ago, has been the pioneer.' 

*' My object in addressing you ds, not to detract from 
the credit due Mr. Thomas for the perfection to which 
he has carried this business, but to correct what 1 be- 
lieve to be an error. My father, John Pott, used an- 
thracite coal to smelt iron ore in his furnace (Manheim 
Iron Works), on the West Branch of the Schuylkill, as 
early as 1836-7: first in connection with charcoal, 
then with wood cut short, like stove-wood, and finally, 
by making some change in the interior of the furnace, 
with anthracite alone, — a hot blast having already been 
attached. 

''These experiments, running through several years, 
demonstrated to his entire satisfaction the practica- 
bility of using anthracite in reducing iron ore ; but 
about 1838-39 the works stood idle for a year or more, 
when, in the year 1840, he made preparation to en- 
large the furnace and to construct it on different prin- 
ciples, which its former size would not admit of. In 
the early spring of 1841, and before the work was com- 
pleted, came a terrible ice-freshet, which swept away 
everything, tearing up the very foundations of forge 
and furnace ; and this was the end of the ' Manheim 
Iron Works.' A few years later my father sold the 
property, and in 1844 removed to Bedford (now Ful- 
ton) County, Pa., where, for several years, he con- 

14 



158 APPENDIX. 

ducted the 'Hanover Iron Works.' The paralyzation 
of this industry, following the adoption of the tariff 
of 1846, compelled him to abandon the business in 
1847, '^i^d thenceforth he devoted himself to agricul- 
ture and milling until he died, in November, 1856. 

''From early life, my father had been engaged in 
the manufacture of iron, and so also was his father 
(John Pott), who, in 1807, built ' Greenwood Furnace' 
on the 'Island,' where Atkins' extensive furnaces, at 
Pottsville, now are. 

" Mr. Thomas is a public benefactor, and deserves 
great credit for his energy and enterprise in carrying 
forward this business to such perfection and success; 
but I feel that it is but just to correct what I believe to 
be an error, and to claim for John Pott the credit of 
having first successfully demonstrated the ' practica- 
bility of using anthracite in smelting iron ores,' and 
for little ' Manheim Furnace ' the distinction of having 
been the ' pioneer ' in what has since grown into such 
wondrous proportions under the skill and tact of Mr. 
Thomas. 

"I remember well hearing my father often remark 
that he was the first to use and demonstrate the adapt- 
ability of anthracite to blast-furnaces, and that others 
— the name of Mr. Thomas being mentioned in his 
observations — had carried it forward to perfect success. 

"At the time of the destruction of the works, the 
supply of anthracite for the reconstructed furnace had 
been contracted for, and a large quantity had already 
been delivered on the furnace 'bank,' — a pile so large 
as to seem to my youthful eyes like a mountain of coal. 

"You will not blame me, sir, for being a little sensi- 



IRON. 159 

tive on this subject. I have not at hand my father's 
books, from which to obtain data, and am writing from 
memory, making the 'Hard-Cider' campaign in 1840 
and the great freshet in 1841 the points from which I 
calculate. If I am in error, I am willing to be cor- 
rected." 

The following was published in the Mauch Chunk 
Democrat : 

" Trenton, N. J., March 26th, 1872. 

" Mr. Editor, — Some unknown person (a friend, I 
suppose) has sent me an article of about half a column 
in length, clipped from some newspaper, upon the 
margin of which I find written in pencil the question : 
* How about this ?' 

*'The article begins thus: 'For some time past 
there has been a discussion going on in regard to the 
credit of making the first a^ithracite iron in the United 
States, — Mr. David Thomas, of the Thomas Iron 
Works, Mr. John Richards, deceased, once of the old 
Mauch Chunk Furnace, and Mr. Lyman, of Pottsville, 
each having their friends to advocate their separate 
claims to the honor.' 

" Next follows a letter from Mr. David Thomas, re- 
lating his experience and knowledge of the matter in 
question, in the course of which he makes the follow- 
ing statement : ' There was another [furnace] at Mauch 
Chunk, owned by three or four men, — a Mr. Bauhm, 
a Mr. Gitto. and a Mr. Lathrop (the latter, I think, is 
still living at Trenton, N. J.). This furnace was 
chilled up in about one week after blowing-in.' 

*'Mr. Thomas's memory must certainly have failed 
him, or he was misinformed in regard to the Mauch 



l6o APPENDIX. 

Chunk Furnace, as will appear evident from the follow- 
ing extracts from — 

'" Notes on the Use of Anthracite in the Manufacture 
of Iron; with some Remarks on its Evaporative Power. 
By Walter R. Johnson, A.M., Boston, 1841.' 

'^'The furnace at Mauch Chunk, which stands at 
the head of the preceding table, is believed to have 
been the first in this country at which any considerable 
success was attained in the smelting of iron with an- 
thracite.* Their ore produced was of various, but mostly 
inferior, qualities, owing probably to deficiency of blast. 
The blowing cylinders were of wood (single acting), and 
at the speed employed did not furnish over 700 cubic 
feet of air per minute. 

*' 'Their apparatus for hot blast was at first defective, 
and was afterwards placed at the tunnel-head, where it 
could be seen as well regulated as though managed in 
separate ovens, with an independent fire. Hence, even 
of the limited supply of air taken into the bellows, a 
considerable portion must have been lost by leakage, 
and by escapes at the open tuyeres there applied.' 

" ' Beaver Meadow, Pa., November 9th, 1840. 

" ' Sir, — x'Vgreeably to a request of Col. Henry High, 
of Reading, I send you the following hastily-written 
statement of the experiments made by Baughman, 
Guiteau & Co., in the smelting of iron ore with an- 
thracite coal as a fuel. 

" ' During the fall and winter of the year 1837, Messrs. 
Joseph Baughman, Julius Guiteau, and Henry High, of 



"'■■'Beaver Meadow (Pa.) coal. 



IROmW. i6i 

Reading, made their first experiment in smelting iron ore 
with anthracite coal, in an old furnace at Mauch Chunk, 
temporarily fitted up for the purpose. 

"'They used about 80 per cent, of anthracite, and 
the result was such as to surprise those who witnessed 
it (for it was considered an impossibility even by iron- 
masters), and to encourage the persons engaged in it 
to go on. In order, therefore, to test the matter more 
thoroughly, they built a furnace on a small scale near 
Mauch Chunk Weigh Lock, which was completed during 
the month of July, 1838. Dimensions: Stack 21}^ 
feet high, 22 feet square at base, boshes 5^ feet across, 
hearth 14 to 16 inches square, and 4 feet 9 inches from 
the dam-stone to the back. The blowing apparatus 
consisted of two cylinders, each 6 feet diameter ; a re- 
ceiver, same diameter, and about 2^ feet deep; stroke 
II inches. Each piston making from 12 to 15 strokes 
per minute. An overshot water-wheel, diameter 14 
feet, length of buckets 3^ feet ; number of buckets, 
36; revolutions per minute, from 12 to 15. 

" ^The blast was applied August 27th, and the furnace 
kept in blast until September loth, when they were 
obliged to stop in consequence of the apparatus for heat- 
ing the blast proving to be too temporary. Several 
tons of iron were produced of Nos. 2 and 3 quality. 
I do not recollect the proportion of anthracite coal 
used. Temperature of the blast did not exceed 200° 
Fahrenheit. 

" 'A new and good apparatus for heating the blast 
was next procured (it was at this time I became a part- 
ner in the firm of B. G. & Co.), consisting of 200 feet 
in length of cast-iron pipes i^ inches; it was placed 

14* 



1 62 APPENDIX. 

in a brick chamber, at the tunnel-head, and heated by 
a flame issuing thence. The blast was again applied 
about the last of November, 1838, and the furnace worked 
remarkably well for five weeks, exclusively with anthra- 
cite coal ; we were obliged, however, for want of ore, 
to blow out on the 12th of January, 1839. During 
this experiment, our doors were open to the public, and 
we were watched very closely both day and night, for 
men could hardly believe what they saw with their own 
eyes, so incredulous was the public in regard to the 
matter at this time; some iron-masters expressed them- 
selves astonished that a furnace would work, whilst 
using unburnt^ icnw ashed , frozen ore, such as was put 
into our furnace. 

'' ' The amount of iron produced was about i}^ tons 
per day, when working best, of Nos. i, 2, and 3 qual- 
ity. The average temperature of the blast was 400° 
Fahrenheit. 

" ' The following season we enlarged the hearth to 19 
by 20 inches, and 5 feet 3 inches from the dam-stone 
to the back of the hearth, and on July 26th the fur- 
nace was again put in blast, and continued in blast 
until November 2d, 1839, ^ ^^^ <^^ys after the dissolution 
of our firm, when it was blown out in good order. 

'' ' For about three months we used no other fuel than 
anthracite, and produced about 100 tons of iron of 
good Nos. I, 2, and 3 quality. When working best, the 
furnace produced two tons a day. 

" ^Temperature of the blast 400° to 600° Fahrenheit. 
The following ores were used by us, viz.: " Pipe ore," 
from Miller's mines, a few miles from Allentown ; 
"brown haematite," commonly called ^^ top mine,^^ or 



IRON. 



163 



surface ore; '* rock ore" from Dickerson mine in New 
Jersey ; and " Williams ToAvnship ore" in Northampton 
County. The last-mentioned ore produced a very 
strong iron and most beautiful cinder. 

*' 'The above experiments were prosecuted under the 
most discouraging circumstances, and if we gain any- 
thing by it, it can only be the credit of acting the part 
of pioneers in a praiseworthy undertaking. 
'' 'Most respectfully, sir, 

" 'Your obedient servant, 

"'F. C. LOWTHROP. 

"'Prof. Walter R. Johnson, Philadelphia.' " 
" 'Correct copy from the book : 

" 'John Wise, 
"'Librarian Franklin Institute, 

'"Philadelphia, Pa.' 

"As an evidence of the reliability of the work from 
which the above extracts were taken, I would remind 
your readers that its author, in 1844, published, by 
order of Congress, a ' Report on the Different Varie- 
ties of Coal' in order to determine their evaporative 
powers. 

"Respectfully yoiirs, 

" F. C. LOWTHROP." 

Subsequently the following appeared in the Bethle- 
hem Times : 

"The following documents have been placed in our 
hands for publication, and we hope that any persons 
who may have facts or evidence of facts which will 
throw light on the subject will forward them to us, that 



1 64 APPENDIX 

we may lay them before our readers. Some time since, 
we published the following paragraph : 

*' ' The first successful use of anthracite coal for the 
smelting of iron was in 1839, at the Pioneer Furnace, 
at Pottsville, Pa. It had been tried on the Lehigh in 
1826, but was unsuccessful.' 

*'To some extent to corroborate this statement, which 
was called in question in private conversation by some 
gentlemen, a friend handed us the following letter and 
petition to the Legislature, with the request to publish 
them, as throwing light on the subject. We are unable 
to give the presentation of the petition to the Legisla- 
ture. Does any one know when it was circulated or 
signed ? There may have been debate in the Assembly 
on the reference of the petition when presented, which 
might contain interesting facts. 

'•'■ ''To the Senate aiid House of Representatives of the 
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania : The petition of the 
subscribers respectfully sheweth. That the State of 
Pennsylvania has been greatly benefited by the results 
of the experiments lately so successfully made to manu- 
facture iron with anthracite coal. They conceive that 
these results are mainly to be attributed to the exertion 
of William Lyman, of Schuylkill County, who, at his 
own risk and expense, put into successful operation in 
this country the first anthracite blast-furnace (on a 
practical scale), the origin, therefore, of all others since 
built and now projecting ; and they, therefore, pray 
your honorable bodies that an act may be passed con- 
ferring on him such privileges as in your wisdom may 
be deemed expedient ; thereby encouraging useful en- 
terprises in future, and affording some compensation 



IRON. 165 

i 
for the heavy outlays always necessarily incident to the 
commencement of every such undertaking.' 

" ' POTTSVILLE, Oct. 14th, 1840. 

''*This is to certify to all whom it may concern, 
that all contracts or bargains for ore which may be 
made by the bearer, Mr. Lance, will be confirmed by 
Messrs. Marshall & Kellogg, proprietors of the anthra- 
cite furnace at this place; and all ore purchased by 
Mr. Lance will be paid for by city acceptance, as shall 
be agreed on between the parties. — For Marshall & 
Kello2f2f. Wm. Lyman.' " 



'Ot>" 



The following article is from the Pottsville Miners' 
Journal : 

"This subject has again been broached in a letter 
wnich we published a few days ago from James Pott, in 
which he stated that his father, John Pott, was the first 
to make anthracite iron at his furnace in 1837-38, 
located in the West Branch Valley. This we know is 
correct as far as it goes ; but in the use of anthracite 
coal alone he failed in making it in a merchantable 
quantity, and ceased working until the trial was made at 
the Pioneer Furnace on the Island in 1839. After the 
success at the Pioneer Furnace, he did intend to re- 
model his furnace to use anthracite coal exclusively; 
but a freshet came and swept away his works, and he 
moved to Bedford — now Fulton — County. Mr. Geisen- 
heimer made a small quantity of anthracite iron at the 
Valley Furnace, and took out a patent, but afterwards 
abandoned it. Small quantities were made on the 
Lehigh ; and we believe that the late Mr. Ridgway 



t66 appendix. 

succeeded in making a small quantity at the old Pott 
Furnace near the Island. But, as they were all char- 
coal furnaces, of course no quantity could be made. 
Anthracite iron was also made in Wales. But these 
experiments satisfied Burd Patterson, and other par- 
ties deeply interested in coal and iron interests, that 
iron could be made with anthracite coal ; and then 
he and other parties commenced building the Pioneer 
Furnace on the Island after the model of the furnace 
in Wales, which Mr. David Thomas had seen, and 
who superintended the building of this furnace. They 
ran out of funds, and the late Nicholas Biddle and 
others made up a fund of $5000 as a premium, which 
they offered to any person who would make anthracite 
iron for commercial use, and rmi the furnace for a 
period of six months. Mr. William Lyman then took 
the furnace, and completed it after the model of the 
Wales furnace, which Mr. Thomas furnished. When 
finished, the furnace was blown in by Mr. Benjamin 
Perry ; and it was a success, and the furnace was kept 
running for the period of six months. The premium, 
after full investigation, was awarded to Mr. Lyman, at 
the Mount Carbon House, in 1840, where a supper 
was given, and it was at this supper that Nicholas 
Biddle gave the following toast : 

" ' Old Pennsylvania — her sons like her soil — rough 
outside, but solid stuffed within ; plenty of coal to warm 
her friends, and plenty of iron to cool her enemies.' - 

*'The iron trade at that time was so much depressed 
under the compromise tariff of 1833, reducing the du- 
ties down to 20 per cent, in 1840, and the opposition 
to the use of anthracite iron by the charcoal interests, 



IRON. 



167 



that Mr. Lyman failed a short time after ; then Mr. 
Marshall, now ol Shamokin, ran it afterwards, and he 
met with the same fate. The furnace was afterwards 
rim by other parties who had but little capital, and 
they too failed, when it finally fell into the hands of 
the Atkins Brothers, who took charge of it in 1857 or 
1858, and they too became to some extent involved, 
owing to the dull state of the iron trade under the free- 
trade system; andif it had not been for the Rebellion 
occurring in 1861-62, which put up the price of iron, 
they might have met the same fate ; but they succeeded, 
and added another furnace to the old Pioneer ; then 
tore down and remodeled the Pioneer, and are now 
erecting a third furnace on the Island on a larger scale 
than the others. Of the three brothers, our citizen, 
Mr. Chas. Atkins, is the only survivor. After the suc- 
cess at the Pioneer, other parties, avoiding the defects 
of the old Pioneer, erected other furnaces on the Le- 
high and elsewhere, and anthracite iron was soon made 
in large quantities, and in 1871, out of 1,914,000 tons 
of iron produced in the United States, 957,608 tons, a 
little more than one-half of the supply, was made with 
anthracite coal. In 1861 the product was 409,229 
tons, having more than doubled in ten years. 

"These are the facts connected with the first manu- 
facture of anthracite iron for commerce in the United 
States ; and Mr. Lyman, who undertook the furnace, 
Mr. David Thomas, who superintended its erection, 
Mr. Benjamin Perry, who blew it in successfully, and 
the gentlemen who offered the premium of $5000 for 
its production in commercial quantities, are really en- 
titled to the credit of establishing this branch of busi- 



1 68 APPENDIX. 

ness in this country; while the other gentlemen, who 
had previously made small quantities before it was 
made in England, are entitled to the credit of demon- 
strating that it could be made with suitable fixtures; 
but they all failed in making it in quantities for use." 

The concluding letter was published in the Mauch 

Chunk Democrat : 

" Trenton, N. J., May 4th, 1872. 
*'Mr. Editor: 

'^Dear Sir, — In \.\\q Journal of March 30th last, you 
published for me a communication containing some ex- 
tracts from a work issued during the year 1841 by Prof. 
Walter R. Johnson, of Philadelphia, entitled 'Notes 
on the Use of Anthracite in the Manufacture of Iron ; 
with some Remarks on its Evaporative Power.' 

"My object in sending you that article was simply 
to defend my former partners and myself from the 
detractive remarks made in a letter written by David 
Thomas, Esq., of Catasauqua, Fa.; he having stated 
that our furnace at Mauch Chunk chilled up in about one 
week after hlowing-in, whereas it, in fact, was not al- 
lowed to chill up at any time. 

" Since my communication was written, I have read 
two or three articles from different papers asserting that 
I was detracting from the credit due Mr. Thomas. 

"I have no wish to claim any 'glory' rightfully 
belonging to Mr. Thomas, or to others. I merely, in 
defending the firm of B., G. & Co. from Mr. T.'s 
unjust remark, quoted authentic history published more 
than thirty years ago, and which has never been con- 
tradicted. 

"Some of the parties who have been writing in 



IK ox. 



169 



behalf of Mr. Thomas, but who evidently know little 
about the smelting of iron ore, speak rather contempt- 
uously of us because we operated with a small furnace. 

^' In a matter which at that time was looked upon, 
even by iron-masters, with much uncertainty as to its 
ultimate success, it would have been very unwise to go 
to the expense of building a large furnace at a cost of 
many thousands of dollars, when it was known that if 
the thing could be accomplished with a small furnace, 
it could be done much more easily, and far more profit- 
ably, with a large one. 

^' We did not enlarge our furnace, as one writer has 
stated, but simply the hearth, and we blew it out be- 
cause it was too small to work at profit; and, not having 
funds with which to construct large works, we returned 
the property on which the furnace was built to the 
L. C. & N. Co., from whom it was leased, which was 
the last we had to do with it. 

'* A few years afterward I was introduced to a gentle- 
man from Pottsville, who, upon being informed by our 
friend that I had been connected with the Mauch Chunk 
furnace, asked if I recollected a committee of the citi- 
zens of Pottsville visiting us one night. I answered in 
the affirmative, and asked him what conclusion they 
arrived at. He replied, ' We watched you all night 
long, and returned home with the full conclusion that 
it was a perfect success.' 

" Within the past week or two I have seen one or 
two articles from the pen of Mr. James Pott, of Harris- 
burg, who claims for his father, Mr. John Pott, the 
credit of having been the first in this country to smelt 
iron ore with anthracite. He dates his first success so 
H 15 



1 70 APPENDIX. 

far back as 1836 and '37. A more unpresuming and 
candid letter than that of Mr. Pott I have never read ; 
and if we are to look outside of published history for the 
one who was first successful, I should say that without a 
doubt (so far as I can learn) Mr. John Pott, of the 
Manheim furnace, was the man. 

"Very respectfully yours, 

"F. C. LOWTHROP." 

We add an article from the Mauch Chunk Coal 
Gazette of May 25th, 1872 : 

"Mr. James Cornelison, formerly a blacksmith 
residing here, was in town on Monday last, and was 
'■ interviewed ' concerning his knowledge of the first 
experiments in the manufacture of anthracite iron. 
He was employed in the establishment of the Lehigh 
Coal and Navigation Company, whose works were 
upon the site of the present foundry of J. H. Salkeld 
& Co., and distinctly remembers the building about 
the year 1823 or 1824 of a stack some 15 or 20 feet 
high, for the purpose of smelting the iron ore with 
anthracite coal. This experiment was, at the time, so 
far successful, that Mr. Cornelison states several 'pigs' 
were actually made with cold-air blast. Messrs. Josiah 
White and Erskine Hazard were concerned in the 
building of the stack, in whose operations much in- 
terest was taken. This statement, coming from a 
gentleman in every way reliable, makes good the asser- 
tion in Johnson's 'Notes on Anthracite Iron,' that 
the first known experiment in this important direction 
was made in Mauch Chunk." 



IROiV, 171 



APPENDIX C. 

In this age of railroads, it seems almost incredible 
that there should have been much difficulty in persuad- 
ing the community of their feasibility and superiority; 
and we are very apt to overlook the signal benefits con- 
ferred upon mankind by those who had the faith and 
courage to advocate them amid such general opposi- 
tion. Among such benefactors in America, no one 
deserves a higher rank than Colonel John Stevens, of 
Hoboken, New Jersey, the father of two sons, Robert 
L. and Edwin A., whose achievements in mechanics 
and science were of a like eminent character. 

In 181 2, Colonel Stevens published a pamphlet 
(very rare now, even in its reprint of 1852), entitled, 
" Documents tending to prove the Superior Advantages 
of Railways and Steam Carriages over Canal Naviga- 
tion." At that time, not a locomotive existed in the 
world, and the only railroads were the few and short 
tramways in use mostly at the coal mines in England. A 
plan had been suggested of bringing the waters of Lake 
Erie by a canal, on an inclhied plane of three hundred 
miles in length, to communicate with the Hudson 
River. This proposition, in those early days, was 
looked upon as being very bold and grand. But 
Stevens, in a communication addressed to the Com- 
missioners appointed by the Legislature to explore the 
route for this projected inland navigation, submitted a 
scheme of what he deemed a better way of accomplish- 
ing this same object. 

**Let a railway of timber be formed," he writes, 



J ^2 APPENDIX. 

''by the nearest practicable route between Lake Erie 
and Albany. The angle of elevation in no part to ex- 
ceed one degree, or such an elevation, whatever it may 
be, as will admit of wheel-carriages to remain station- 
ary when no power is exerted to impel them forward. 
This railway, throughout its course, to be supported on 
pillars raised from three to five or six feet from the 
surface of the ground. The carriage-wheels of cast- 
iron, the rims flat, with projecting flanges to fit on the 
surface of the railways. The moving-power to be a 
steam-engine, nearly similar in construction to that on 
board the Juliana, a ferry-boat plying between this city 
and Hoboken."* 

He proceeds to mention the advantages to result 
from adopting his plan, arguing in its favor because of 
its cheapness ; its saving of time in construction ; its 
freedom from decay, from interruption in storms, and 
from casualties ; its economy in the expense of trans- 
portation. As to the speed that might be attained, he 
estimates, "after every possible reduction for exagger- 
ation," that it might reach foiLr miles an hour. 

From the general incredulity at first manifested in the 
likelihood of propelling boats by steam, he is prepared 
for tardiness in accepting his theories concerning the 
propulsion by steam of cars, although he urged that 
there was no more difficulty in the one case than in the 
other. After going into minute and scientific calcula- 

* The y-uliana was built by Colonel Stevens in 1811, her engine 
being of the model patented by himself. The steam was used expan- 
sively, — cut off in the main valves. She was the first boat to navigate 
the Sound, as his Phcenix was the first, in 1808, to navigate the ocean 
betv een Sandv Hook and the Delaware. 



COL. JOHN STEVENS. 173 

tions to substantiate his theories, he adds, '^ Should 
these railways be so subject to wear as that the frequency 
of their renewal becomes inconvenient and expensive, 
resource could be had at any time to cast or plated iron 
railways, which, without any further expense or trouble, 
could be fastened on the top of the wooden railways." 

In the following extract from a letter of Chancellor 
Robert R. Livingston, we have a sample of the objections 
urged to this scheme even by learned and thoughtful 
men : 

^' I have read your very ingenious propositions as to 
the railway communication. I fear, however, on mature 
reflection, that they will be liable to serious objections, 
and ultimately more expensive than a canal. They 
must be double, so as to prevent the danger of two 
such heavy bodies meeting. The walls on which they 
are placed must be at least four feet below the surface, 
and three above, and must be clamped with iron; and 
even then would hardly sustain so heavy a weight as you- 
propose moving at the rate of four 7niles an hoitr 07i wheels. 
As to wood, it would not last a week ; they must be 
covered with iron, and that, too, very thick and strong. 
The means of stoppifig these heavy carriages without a 
great shock, and of preventing them from running upon 
each other, would be very difficult. In case of accidental 
stops, or the necessary stops to take wood and water, etc. , 
many accidents would happen. The carriage of conden- 
sing-water would be veiy troublesojne. Upon the whole, 
I fear the expense would be much greater than that of 
canals, without being so convejiient. ' ' * 

* Similar views seem to have been entertained by the Managers of 
the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, who, in their report for the 

15* 



^^4 APPENDIX. 

To this letter of his distinguished brother-in-law, 
Colonel Stevens replies at length, detailing the com- 
parative cost of constructing railroad and canal, and 
showing how much would be saved in building the 
former. So, too, he shows how much more convenient 
it would be than the latter. And in communications 
to Gouverneur Morris and De Witt Clinton, he still 
further argues his cause, with a sagacity simply sur- 
prising in days so remote from the employment of 
railways. He modestly asks for the sum of three 
thousand dollars, with which to make experiments, 
predicting that the practical benefits to be derived 
from them by the country at large would far outweigh 
the value of this sum. 

His communications were referred to a committee, 
who, through Gouverneur Morris, reported adversely to 
the project. Their answer is evidently prepared with 
great care, and is mainly based upon supposed scien- 
tific principles. They give the preference, in drawing 
a weight, to horses, because of their having a more 
sufficient hold upon the earth. The rims of the engine- 
wheels, it was thought, would by their friction impede 
the progressive motion. Great danger was appre- 
hended from the warping of logs by change of weather. 
Similar difficulty was anticipated from the wheel-rims 
and railway not fitting exactly. After an elaborate 
argument, they conclude that it is not probable that a 
way could be made of sufficient strength to warrant 

year 1841, say of the railroad they were then building to connect their 
canal with the North Branch Canal, that " it has already excited much 
attention, and will unquestionably form a feeder of great vahte to our 
canal." 



COL. JOHN STEVENS. 175 

such speed as the rate of four miles per hour, ''which," 
say the committee, ^^ is nearly two yards in a second.''^ 

In answer to this report, Colonel Stevens writes, that 
the objections therein urged "have only served to es- 
tablish more firmly in my mind the very favorable 
sentiments I entertain respecting the practical utility 
of the proposed railways." Want of space forbids our 
giving here the various arguments by which he com- 
bated these objections. Suffice it to say, that they do 
him great credit even in this period of advanced knowl- 
edge upon the whole subject, and almost startle us with 
the accuracy of their predictions. In alluding to the 
question of velocity, he says, — be it remembered, in 
181 2, — that, while it may not in practice be convenient 
to exceed twenty or thirty miles per hour, he would not 
be surprised at seeing steam-carriages propelled at the 
rate of forty or fifty miles, and he thinks of nothing to 
hinder them from moving at the rate of one hundred 
miles per hour. 

It is a matter of congratulation that he had the satis- 
faction of living to see his predictions verified, and of 
himself riding upon a railway (the Camden and Am- 
boy), constructed under the supervision of his son, at 
the rate of fifty miles an hour. 



176 APPENDIX. 

APPENDIX D. 

GLEN ONOKO. 

This beautiful glen is situated two miles above Mauch 
Chunk, and has lately been made so convenient of ac- 
cess that it is now deservedly attracting large numbers 
of visitors throughout the year. 

It is a striking freak of nature, and reveals pictures 
of grandeur and magnificence not often excelled. Its 
course is westerly, and the total ascent over 900 feet. 
It forms the channel for a pure and limpid stream which 
follows its eccentric course over innumerable cascades 
and rapids, and through grottoes and ravines, until it 
empties, near what is known as the Turnhole Bridge, 
into the Lehigh, the river at this point making, perhaps, 
the sharpest turn visible along its entire length. 

At the outset, we come upon the 

Entrance Cascade and Pool, 

which, with their bright ripples and foam, and with the 
huge banks of rhododendron (when in bloom present- 
ing a gorgeous appearance) surrounding them, give us 
at once a most favorable impression of the treasures 
embraced within the gorge. 

For some distance the railroad company have laid 
wooden pipes for the supply of the water-tank near the 
depot. 

Proceeding a few feet, we arrive at a neat rustic bridge, 
from which we have a full view of 




CHAMELEON FALLS. 

(50 FEET HIGH.) 



Page 176. 



GLEN ONOKO. 177 

Crystal Cascade, 

whose transparent waters, gurgling over the rocks and 
glistening in the sunlight, establish their just claim to 
the name by which they are distinguished. Looking 
to our back, down the rocky and leafy arcade, we obtain 
a very pretty sketch of the river and the bridges cross- 
ing the Lehigh, including the covered entrance into the 
tunnel of the Lehigh and Susquehanna Division of the 
N. J. Central Railroad. 

Just above, on our left, we come to the cleft 

Pulpit Rocks, 

some twenty feet high, standing as stately ushers into 
the romantic scenery awaiting us. They are covered 
with delicate moss and ferns, and from their top may 
be had a most artistic view of the 

Mossy Cascade, 

which comes dashing over the moss-covered rocks into 
the pellucid pools below, singing a cheerful welcome to 
the weary traveler, who, in this sylvan retreat, cannot 
but be invigorated by the healthy and refreshing air 
with which he is constantly surrounded. 
We next reach ^e 

Laurel Cascade, 

flowing swiftlyby immense growths of laurel, interspersed 
here and there with the graceful branches of the bright 
yew tree. Through the majestic hemlocks we are de- 
lighted with a distant glimpse of Chameleon Falls. 
We have now arrived at what has been termed 



17S APPENDIX. 

- The Heart of the Glen, 

from the dark and impenetrable masses of foliage on 
every side, and from the lively character of the scenes 
around us. Whichever way we look, we are greeted 
with wild and weird prospects well calculated to elicit 
our wonderment and awe. 
Here are situated the 

Stairway Cascades, 

a series of minor rapids, overleaping one another along 
a continuous distance of at least 200 feet, shining re- 
splendently amid the different hues and tints of the 
disordered and water-carved rocks over which they flow 
so musically. 

At this point there has been thrown across the stream 
an artistic bridge leading up by an ingeniously contrived 
stairway (made from a gigantic hemlock) to a slight 
eminence, whence we obtain what is deemed by many 
to be 

The Finest View in the Glen. 

It includes not only the Chameleon Falls, immediately 
in front of us, but also the Onoko Falls, some distance 
beyond, and this double vista is rich with a diversity of 
beauty not easy to describe. The cliffs about us rising 
to a towering height, the rhododendron encircling us, 
the clouds rolling along over the hill-tops, the shadows 
chasing each other through the trees and over the rocks, 
the veils of mist floating in the distance, and the steady 
flow of the silvery waterfalls, — all enchant us, and we 
pronounce the trip already a grand success. 

A look down the glen also from this same point is 




ONOKO FALLS. 

(90 FEET HIGH.) 



Page 179. 



GLEN ONOKO. 179 

sure to elicit enthusiastic admiration of its manifold 
features of sublimity. 

A "short walk on either side of the stream brings us 
in full view of the 

Chameleon Falls. 

They are so called from the variety of colors so often 
noticeable in the spray and foam. They are about 50 
feet high, and with a full stream present a most beau- 
tiful appearance. The water falls into a half-square 
basin, with a log leaning picturesquely against it. On 
either side, the dense and variegated foliage makes a 
charming contrast to the sombre walls of native rock 
rising so majestically. 

By an attractive route we are next conducted to 

Onoko Falls, 

which are the highest in the glen, and by many esteemed 
the handsomest. Their height is 90 feet, and they will 
certainly receive the encomium of all lovers of natural 
beauty. The shelving, overhanging rocks on either side 
rise above us most grandly, and covered as they are with 
moss and fern, a tree now and then jutting from out 
their apparently sterile embrace, they form a fitting 
embellishment to the dashing and sparkling waters which 
have been for centuries seeking through their fissures an 
outlet from their mountain source. 

If we go behind the falls, we can obtain a sight of 
them which will (especially when the sun is shining) 
amply r^pay us for the slight moistening which we may 
thereby run the risk of receiving. 

To any one suffering from the summer's heat a so- 



l8o APPENDIX. 

journ in the vicinity of these falls may be confidently 
recommended. The atmosphere is always most cool 
and refreshing. Snow has been found here as late as 
the 2oth of May. Nor is it only attractive in the sum 
mer season, but a visit to them 

In the Winter 

is most interesting. The appearance of the falls and 

of the adjoining rocks for 300 feet in circumference, all 

encased in snow, with all manner of icy stalactites and 

stalagmites depending and ascending everywhere, is 

truly magnificent. 

After descending the height already noted, the water 

falls over a ledge of rocks immediately under it, and 

forms the 

Rainbow Cascade, 

so called from the fact of rainbows being often visible 
here in all their gorgeous hues, giving a completeness 
to the scenery which makes it one of the most delightful 
spots in the glen. 

A few winters ago, as a gentleman from Mauch Chunk 
was making the tour of the glen, he discovered at the 
foot of these falls the dead body of a deer which had, no 
doubt, leaped from their summit to escape the hunter's 
hounds. 

On ascending the path leading from this point we 
soon come to what has been aptly styled 

The Fat Man's Misery, 

being a narrow passage through two erect birch trees 
which will be found rather uncomfortable for any one 
given to corpulency. 



GLEN ONOKO. l8l 

A little farther on there runs the old 

Warrior Path, 

being the war-trail used, it may be for centuries, by the 
Indians in passing from the Susquehanna to the Dela- 
ware. It was also traversed by General Sullivan and 
his brave army after the bloody Wyoming massacre in 
the year 1778, and subsequently by the lumberman in 
plying his trade, whence it was known as the Rafts- 
man's Path. 

We are soon at the head of Onoko Falls, which we 
must cross to gain the magnificent view from Sunrise 
Point. It is said that a former resident of this valley 
(now deceased) once made here a narrow escape from 
death. He had been belated in the woods, and in fol- 
lowing the bed of the stream on his way out he came 
of a sudden to the summit of the falls. He was pro- 
ceeding cautiously and was stopped on the edge of the 
precipice by the dim sight of the trees below. Another 
step would have landed him inanimate where the poor 
deer was found. 

The student of geology will find much to interest 
him in the study of the various formations of rock seen 
along our route, and will be amused, while he rests him- 
self on the conveniently-located seats, at some grotesque 
appearances which are thus oftentimes presented. In 
one place near the Onoko Falls there is an almost per- 
fect representation of a camel crouching beneath a heavy 
burden, and the imagination can easily discern other 
animals and figures. 

Having crossed the head of Onoko Falls to the left, 
we are brought to 



1 82 APPENDIX. 

Sunrise Point, 

from which, looking eastward, there is spread out before 
the eye a panorama of rare and enchanting beauty. In 
quick succession we see the Lehigh River, East Mauch 
Chunk, and Mount Pisgah, and then, stretching still 
farther southward, the Lehigh Water Gap, all laid out 
most picturesquely, forming a landscape upon which 
we willingly pause to feast ourselves. We begin now 
to realize how high we have traveled, and how full of 
interest is every turn in our route, furnishing ample 
material for the artist's pencil or the poet's pen. 
We next climb the 

Rustic Stairway, 
and find ourselves rather abruptly at the 

Terrace Falls, 

the water descending impetuously over a ledge of rocks 
which almost seem as though they had been terraced 
with the precision and skill of the artisan. 
Another short walk brings us to the 

Cave Falls. 

These derive their name from the cave in their immediate 
rear, into which quite a large party can enter. Looking 
from behind the falls, the perspective is singularly hand- 
some and romantic. Around us we will find the rem- 
nants of lists of visitors' names who have ventured here 
to enjoy the novel scene, while upon the rocks may be 
seen the more enduring record of such tourists as have 
come provided with paint and brush. 

For several hundred feet we are now conducted by a 



GLEN ONOKO. 183. 

wild and fantastic path along beds of the sweet trailing 
arbutus, and by the side of a ceaseless round of cascades 
and torrents, to the summit of the mountain, and to 

The Hunter's Rock- Cabin, 

built many years ago, and much frequented over-night 
by sportsmen, who, sheltered by hemlock boughs and 
warmed by their wood-fires, slept soundly enough, dis- 
turbed only by their vivid dreams of the exciting scenes 
of their day's chase and travel. 

This will be a convenient spot for us to rest a while 
and eat our lunch, which in every instance will need to 
be generously provided. Here, too, we will entertain 
each other by our enthusiastic admiration of the grand 
and beautiful sights which our entire passage through 
the glen has afforded us, and lift at least a silent tribute 
of praise to the Divine Architect of the universe. Whose 
handiwork is everywhere so manifest. After resting 
and lunching, the traveler should on no account fail to 
cross the stream here and proceed by the path recently 
made, over what has been called ' ' The Lava Beds, ' ' to 

Packer's Point, 

named in honor of Hon. Asa Packer, President of the 
Lehigh Valley Railroad Company. It is less than a 
quarter of a mile, perhaps, from the cabin, and were 
it much farther even, we all should feel more than re- 
warded for our walk by the really superb view which 
may be here so thoroughly enjoyed. From the lookout 
erected on the rocks we can see for miles up and down 
the Lehigh, to the bottom of the giddy heights, along 
the sharp curves, over bridges and less lofty hills, with 



1 84 APPENDIX. 

a full view of East Mauch Chunk, and through the 
Lehigh Gap of the mountains beyond. 

Around us nature is undisturbed. Beneath us, in the 
railroads and canals, we see how she has been overcome 
and made subservient to man's wants and pleasures. 
Beyond we are confronted with his settlements, and on 
the very tops of the distant mountains we recognize the 
results of his toil in the green and fertile fields adorn- 
ing them. The eye thus takes in at a glance a diminu- 
tive picture of the world at large, and conveys to the 
soul fresh inspiration for the stern realities of our every- 
day life. No one can dwell upon such scenery as is 
here afforded without receiving a stimulus of the most 
wholesome character, and again we urge the tourist not 
to return from the glen without enjoying it. 

THE SAND-SPRINGS AND JAMES RUN. 

Between one and two miles from the summit of the 
mountain the tourist may have an additional treat which 
will abundantly compensate him for any fatigue which 
he may undergo. We refer first to 

The Sand-Springs. 

These, natural curiosities (at the head of James Run) 
consist of several large and small springs of various 
depths, which are continually boiling and bubbling, 
throwing the water and sand to a height of a foot or 
more, sometimes beneath the surface of the water and 
sometimes above it. They are well deserving a visit, 
and an experienced angler may return with a mess of 
speckled trout, with which he may regale himself as he 
recalls the pleasures of his trip. 



THE SAND-SPRINGS AND JAMES RUN. £85 
A short distance below the springs we reach 

James Run, 

which is one of the most romantic streams to be found 
in the State. It contains a large body of water, which 
flows most charmingly through deep ravines and over 
huge masses of handsome rocks, forming an endless series 
of very lovely waterfalls and cascades, some of which are 
of considerable height and length. The whole course 
of the stream is one of real grandeur and beauty, dis- 
playing at every turn something fresh to admire, and 
furnishing many most attractive pictures, over which 
one may delight himself for hours. To one fond of 
trouting this stream offers an incentive which will make 
him only too anxious to repeat his trip. 



APPENDIX E« 
SAYRE. 



At this station (named in honor of Mr. Robert H. 
Sayre, President of the P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Com- 
pany) connection is made with the Soudiern Central 
R. R. for Auburn and Syracuse on the N. Y. Central 
R. R., and Fair Haven and Oswego on Lake Ontario, 
and with the Ithaca & Athens R. R. for Ithaca, the 
seat of Cornell University, at the head of Cayuga 
Lake. The P. & N. Y. C. & R. R. Co. have about 
60 acres of land at this point, and have built a hand- 
some brick round-house with stalls for 15 engines. 
Space has also been reserved for the erection of ma- 



1 86 APPENDIX. 

chine-shops and other buildings when required. Car- 
shops will probably be put up during the present year. 
A planing-mill has just been erected near the depot, 
and a short distance above, the Cayuta Wheel Foundry 
Company have built substantial works for the manufac- 
ture of car-wheels, with a present capacity of about 50 
pairs per day. The land in the vicinity of the depot 
has been laid out in building lots, streets have been 
opened, several houses have been erected, and other 
improvements are in contemplation which will afford a 
nucleus for a thriving settlement 



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